Disposed¶34

S.M.Arun Kumaar v. The State rep.by its Inspector of Police

Madras HC19 Feb 2026CRL OP/4182/2026

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

Early disposal of trial; time-bound disposal direction; Section 528 BNSS petition; chit fund fraud case C.C.No.13418 of 2022; CMM/CCB Court Egmore Chennai; Central Crime Branch Chit Fund Division; 118 witnesses; victims who are senior citizens as exceptional circumstance; High Court Bar Association Allahabad vs. State of Uttar Pradesh (2024) 6 SCC 267 Constitution Bench on time-bound disposal; Madras High Court; A.D. Jagadish Chandira; one-year disposal timeline.

What did the court decide?

Direction to the learned Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM)/CCB Court, Egmore, Chennai, to dispose of C.C.No.13418 of 2022 as expeditiously as possible, preferably within a period of one year from the date of receipt of a copy of the order; with the above direction the Criminal Original Petition stands disposed of. ¶34

S.M.Arun Kumaar Vs The State rep.by its Inspector of Police — Madras HC (2026) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

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Issue for consideration

Whether this Court should direct expedited disposal of C.C.No.13418 of 2022 pending before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM)/CCB Court, Egmore, Chennai. +1 more

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Court's answer

The Court directed the learned Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM)/CCB Court, Egmore, Chennai, to dispose of C.C.No.13418 of 2022 as expeditiously as possible, preferably within one year from the date of receipt of a copy of the order.

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Ratio / Principle

This Court observed, from the extracted portion of the Supreme Court Constitution Bench decision in High Court Bar Association, Allahabad vs. State of Uttar Pradesh, that in exceptional circumstances constitutional courts may issue directions for time-bound disposal of cases.

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Key takeaways

This Court considered the presence of several victims in the case, most of whom are senior citizens, to be an exceptional circumstance warranting a time-bound disposal direction.ratio¶30

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

High Court of Judicature at Madras (A.D. Jagadish Chandira, J.), Crl.O.P.No.4182 of 2026, decided 19.02.2026: Petitioner, by a Criminal Original Petition under Section 528 of B.N.S.S., sought early disposal of C.C.No.13418 of 2022 (chit fund fraud case) pending before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM)/CCB Court, Egmore, Chennai, wherein 118 witnesses were to be examined, two had been examined, and the matter was posted to 01.04.2026. Relying on the Constitution Bench decision in High Court Bar Association, Allahabad vs. State of Uttar Pradesh, (2024) 6 SCC 267, that constitutional courts should ordinarily refrain from fixing time-bound schedules for disposal of cases before other courts but may issue such directions in exceptional circumstances, this Court held that the presence of several victims, most of whom are senior citizens, was an exceptional circumstance, and directed disposal of the case as expeditiously as possible, preferably within one year from receipt of a copy of the order. Petition disposed of accordingly.

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Crl.O.P.No.4182 of 2026

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS

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DATED : 19.02.2026

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CORAM:

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THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE A.D.JAGADISH CHANDIRA

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Crl.O.P.No.4182 of 2026

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S.M.Arun Kumaar ... Petitioner

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-Vs-

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1.The State rep.by its Inspector of Police, Central Crime Branch, Wing 7, Chit Fund Division, Vepery, Chennai-600 007.

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2.S.K.Kannan 3.Gowri 4.S.Nagaraj 5.Satish

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... Respondents

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Prayer : Criminal Original Petition filed under Section 528 of B.N.S.S, to direct the learned Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM)/CCB Court EgmoreChennai, to dispose of C.C.No.13418 of 2022 expeditiously as possible within a stipulated time frame

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For Petitioner : Ms.Aishwarya G.Prakash for M/s.A.S.Kailasam and Associates For R1 : Mr.S.Santhosh Government Advocate (Crl.Side)

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Page 1 of 5

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https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis

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Crl.O.P.No.4182 of 2026

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O RDER

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This Criminal Original Petition has been filed seeking early disposal of C.C.No.13418 of 2022 pending on the file of the learned Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM)/CCB Court, Egmore, Chennai.

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When the matter was taken up for hearing, the learned Government Advocate (Crl. Side) appearing for the respondent submitted that this is a case involving chit fund fraud, wherein a total of one hundred and eighteen (118) witnesses are to be examined. He further submitted that out of the total 118 witnesses, two witnesses have already been examined, and the matter has been posted to 01.04.2026 for the further examination of witnesses.

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Heard learned counsel on either side and perused the materials available on record.

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It is pertinent to state that a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court, in the case of High Court Bar Association, Allahabad vs. State of Uttar Pradesh reported i n (2024) 6 SCC 267 , has held that the constitutional courts, in the ordinary course, should refrain from fixing a time-bound schedule for the disposal of cases pending before any other court. The relevant portion of the Page 2 of 5

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https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis

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Crl.O.P.No.4182 of 2026

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said decision for the sake of ready reference is reproduced below:

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"47.3. Constitutional courts, in the ordinary course,

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should refrain from fixing a time-bound schedule for the disposal of cases pending before any other courts. Constitutional courts may issue directions for the time-bound disposal of cases only in exceptional circumstances. The issue of prioritising the disposal of cases should be best left to the decision of the courts concerned where the cases are pending."

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(emphasis supplied by this Court).

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5. It has also been held in the aforesaid extracted portion that in exceptional circumstances, constitutional courts may issue directions for time bound disposal of cases.

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Considering the facts and circumstances of this case and also

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considering that there are several victims, most of whom are senior citizens, which in the opinion of this Court is an exceptional circumstance, this Court directs the learned Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM)/CCB Court Egmore, Chennai, to dispose of the case in C.C.No.13418 of 2022, as expeditiously as possible, preferably within a period of one year from the date of receipt of a copy of this order.

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Page 3 of 5

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https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis

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Crl.O.P.No.4182 of 2026

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With the above direction, this Criminal Original Petition stands disposed of.

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19.02.2026

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Index : Yes/No Neutral Citation: Yes/No Speaking/Non Speaking order rpl To

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1.The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM)/CCB Court, Egmore, Chennai

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2.The Inspector of Police, Central Crime Branch, Wing 7, Chit Fund Division, Vepery, Chennai-600 007. 3.The Public Prosecutor, High Court of Madras, Chennai.

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Page 4 of 5

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https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis

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Crl.O.P.No.4182 of 2026

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A.D.JAGADISH CHANDIRA . J,

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rpl

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Crl.O.P.No.4182 of 2026