Dinakaran's FERA case: Proceedings adjourned till 24 March in answer to his pleas

Chennai: A city court on Wednesday adjourned till Friday its proceedings in two cases of violation of foreign exchange laws by AIADMK Deputy General Secretary TTV Dinakaran on his plea for time to seek relief from the high court. Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate and Economic Offences Court-II Judge S Malarmathy adjourned the hearings in the two 20-year-old cases on the plea for Dinakaran’s counsel that his client needed time to move the Madras High Court against its single-judge bench order that quashed his discharge in those cases. [caption id=“attachment_3284994” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] TTV Dinakaran. Facebook[/caption] He said Dinakaran would seek recall of the high court’s 1 Feb order quashing his discharge by the trial court in the cases filed by Enforcement Directorate over some financial transactions by him in 1994 allegedly in violation of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA). The Economic Offences Court-I had discharged Dinakaran and AIADMK General Secretary V K Sasikala, his aunt, on May 18, 2015 in both the cases but with the ED challenging that order in the high court, Justice G Chockalingam had set it aside and remitted the cases back for trial. Accordingly, Dinakaran, the AIADMK nominee for the 12 April byelection to R K Nagar Assembly constituency, had on 17 March appeared before ACMM Malarmathy, who had then slated the matter for further proceedings on Wednesday. As the matter came up for the hearing on Wednesday, Dinakaran’s counsel sought adjournment but ED’s Senior Prosecutor M Dhandapani objected to it. As the ACMM sought to adjourn the hearing for Thursday, Dinakaran’s counsel pleaded that his client was planning to file his nomination for the by-election the same day and would not be able to appear in person. The ACMM then posted the matter for further hearing on Friday. The ED cases against Dinakaran pertains to the transfer of USD 1.04 crore to Dipper investments through Barclays Bank, Virgin Islands, and another sum of £ 44.37 lakh through West Bank Ltd, Ireland allegedly breaching the FERA provisions. Sasikala has been accused of transferring 19.9 lakh USD (about Rs three crore) through a staff member of a nationalised bank in violation of the FERA rules. Sasikala, close aide of late chief minister Jayalalithaa, is now serving her prison term following her conviction by the Supreme Court on 14 February last in a disproportionate asset case worth Rs 66.65 crore.