HC restrains cops from action against house owners

The Madras High Court on Thursday restrained police from taking criminal action against those house owners, renting out their premises, not providing particulars about names and permanent addresses of tenants to police consequent to a March 3 order.

The police in its order had said “anti-social elements in the guise of tenants are in occupation of many residential premises in the city posing danger to public tranquility and public peace.”

Granting the interim order, the First Bench, comprising Chief Justice M Y Eqbal and Justice T S Sivagnanam, however, declined to suspend the impugned order and posted the petition filed by advocate Jim Raj Milton for hearing after two weeks.

Claiming that the city police commissioner’s order, under section 144 CrPC, was in the wake of the
February 22 incident at the city’s Velachery area where five persons, claimed to be bank robbers, were killed in an alleged encounter with police, the petitioner said the order violated the right to privacy.