The Madras High Court today quashed an order passed by the Thiruvannamalai District Collector seizing the cheque signing power from the Vice President of Vengikkal Panchayat in the district based on resolutions passed by majority of the Panchayat Union members.
Justice T.S. Sivagnanam before whom the petition filed by the Vice President of Panchayat Union, P.K. Suresh (AIADMK) came up , said the collector had not assigned any independent reasons to cancel the cheque signing power of the petitioner, and therefore the impugned order "is arbitrary and unreasonable and liable to be set aside..."
The petitioner, P.K.Suresh (AIADMK) had submitted that he had been signing the cheques along with the Panchayat President K.Sarvanan (DMK) upto August 4 last year.
It was alleged that the president became inimical to the petitioner as he belonged to a rival party and mustered support from group of elected ward members and passed a resolution to change the cheque signing power from him in favour of an elected ward member M.Vadivel.
Following this, the Block Development Officer and District Collector granted cheque signing powers to Vadivel. The president filed a petition praying to approve the resolution. Though the petitioner was impleaded as the third respondent, the writ plea was disposed of at the admission stage by taking into consideration the limited prayer.
A direction was issued to the District Collector to consider the representation after giving opportunity of hearing to all the parties concerned especially to the petitioner.
The collector had called the petitioner for an inquiry but the petitioner alleged it was mere farce and without considering the petitioner's submission that he never refused to sign cheques, the impugned order was passed and the cheque signing power divested from him and entrusted to the Ward member.It was alleged that the ward member is a close friend of the panchayat president.
The petitioner prayed to quash the order passed by the Collector.
