Madras High Court today reserved its order on a petition seeking a statutory investigation into tapes containing purported phone conversations aimed allegedly at influencing judgement in the 2004 Sankararaman murder case in which Kanchi Seer Jayendra Saraswathi is the main accused.
The case is being tried by the Puducherry Chief Judge.
In his petition, advocate P Sundararajan said he had preferred a complaint with the High court Registrar (Vigilance) seeking a probe into complaint that money was allegedly being used to influence judgement in the case.
He said if the inquiry report confirmed the alleged financial transactions, a retrial of the case should be ordered by another judge in the Union Territory.
When the matter came up before a specially-constituted Bench, comprising Justices K N Basha and N Paul Vasanthakumar, it was submitted that the High Court had directed the Puducherry Government to repatriate the trial judge and post him as Principal District Judge, Perambalur.
The concurrence of the territorial government was awaited.
Sankararaman was the Manager in the Varadarajaperumal temple in Kancheepuram and was allegedly murdered at his office on the premises of the temple on September 3, 2004.
The trial was shifted from Chengalpattu court to Puducherry as per Supreme Court order given on a petition filed before the apex court by the Kanchi seer in October 2005.
Jayendra and his junior Vijayendra Saraswathi have been charged under IPC sections 302 (murder) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy).