Former City Public Prosecutor M.L. Jegan has approached the Madras High Court assailing the government order terminating his service and appointing an interim CPP.
When the plea came up for hearing, Justice M. Duraiswamy referred the issue to the Chief Justice of the High Court for necessary orders as similar petitions challenging the appointments of law officers were already pending before the First Bench of the court.
According to Mr. Jegan, he was appointed as CPP on July 12, 2011, and after six years of unblemished service as a prosecutor, his service was terminated through a government order on June 2.
‘No valid reason stated’
Alleging that his service was terminated without valid reasons, he said, “Appointment of law officers to the district courts should be processed through the Collector’s office, but my termination and the present appointment of Gowri Ashokan as CPP in-charge was made without following the due process of law.”
Pointing out that as per the provisions of CrPc, the consent of the principal sessions judge of the district is mandatory, Mr. Jegan said that in the present appointment, no such opinion was sought.
Referring to a recent HC judgment mandating the government to frame guidelines for the appointment of law officers, the petitioner said the government had framed rules only for the appointment of law officers for the High Court and alleged that the authorities are appointing law officers for district courts as per their whims and fancies., still no such rules were framed for appointments to district courts and hence the authorities are appointing the law officers for district courts as per their whims and fancies.