Chennai, Dec. 7: The embattled A. Raja has landed in yet another problem with the Madras High Court on Tuesday ordering suspension of a lawyer close to him for pressuring a judge to grant bail to the former communication minister’s friends caught in a mark-sheet scam in Puducherry.
A division bench comprising Justice F.M. Ibrahim Kalifullah and Justice M.M. Sundresh ordered the suspension of the lawyer, Mr R.K. Chandramohan, who is also the chairman of the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry while referring extensively to the letter from Justice R. Regupathy, since retired, written to the Chief Justice of the High Court complaining about the lawyer’s conduct.
In that letter of July 2, 2009, Justice Regupathy had told the CJ that Mr Chandramohan had come to his chamber and said that a man and his son accused in a mark scam case “are family friends of a Union minister by name Raja, and that the petition filed by them for anticipatory bail must be considered favourably.”
“Simultaneously, he handed over his mobile phone by saying the Union minister is on the line to have a talk with me. Right away, I discouraged such conduct and told him that the case would be disposed of in accordance with law,” said Justice Regupathy in his letter.
It may be recalled that Justice Regupathy had expressed anguish in the open court after Mr Chandramohan’s visit to his chamber demanding an anticipatory bail.
However, Mr Raja has denied any wrongdoing.