The Madras High Court on Wednesday called for details of political parties which had appointed “persons with muscle power/criminal background” as office-bearers at every level. It also wanted to know whether the criminals themselves float political parties to escape from the clutches of law.
A Division Bench of Justices N. Kirubakaran and S. Baskaran called for the details from the Centre as well as the State government while passing interim orders on a habeas corpus petition filed against the preventive detention of a gangster accused of murdering a rival gangster at Ayanavaram recently.
“The case on hand would demonstrate as to how the rowdy gangs/paid killers are active in Tamil Nadu, jeopardizing law and order and creating panic in the minds of the common man in Tamil Nadu as well as in other parts of our country. The clash between two rowdy gangs have resulted in many killings,” the judges said. Expressing concern over rowdy gangs and paid killers being active in the State and indulging in heinous crimes such as murder and dacoity, the Bench said, the Centre was also equally responsible to keep a check on inter-State criminal gangs by bringing in a central law to curb the menace of organised crimes.
It posed a set of 25 questions to be answered by the Centre as well as the State government by November 30 and significant among them were: “Whether these rowdy gangs/paid killers have got the blessings of some of the police officials? Why juveniles are getting attracted to gangsters/rowdy groups/paid killers?”
The court wanted to know whether it was true that “real estate sharks” engage rowdy gangs/paid killers to grab properties of innocent people and whether it was a common practice to get fake accused surrender before the police or the lower courts concerned just to screen the real offenders.
Apart from seeking data such as the number of rowdy gangs and paid killers active in the country, the nature of offences committed by them in the last 10 years, the rate of conviction and the political support enjoyed by them, the Bench said, it would also like to know the steps taken so far to curb the activities of such gangs.
The court wondered why the State government should also not have a legislation on the lines of the Maharashtra Control of Organized Crimes Act of 1999 and the Karnataka Control of Organized Crimes Act of 2000 (KCOCA) besides forming a special team headed by an officer in the rank of Director General of Police to tackle organised crime.
