Has the Madras HC Ordered an Accelerated Inquiry into YouTuber ‘Savukku’ Shankar's Cases?

Synopsis
Key Takeaways
- The Madras High Court has ordered a swift investigation into 13 criminal cases against YouTuber ‘Savukku’ Shankar.
- Final reports must be submitted to jurisdictional magistrates within four months.
- 24 additional cases are also pending trial, with a six-month deadline set for completion.
- The court dismissed Shankar’s petition regarding police interference with his digital platform.
- The DGP reported that 38 criminal cases have been filed against Shankar to date.
Chennai, July 29 (NationPress) The Madras High Court on Tuesday mandated the Tamil Nadu Police to hasten investigations into 13 criminal cases involving YouTuber ‘Savukku’ Shankar, also known as A. Shankar, and to submit final reports to the relevant jurisdictional magistrates within four months.
Justice P. Velmurugan, who issued the ruling, further instructed trial courts handling 24 additional criminal cases against the YouTuber to finalize the trial processes within six months.
These cases have already been investigated, and charge sheets have been filed by the jurisdictional police.
The order was given while dismissing a writ petition submitted by Shankar, who sought a directive to the Home Secretary and the Director General of Police (DGP) to address three of his representations.
He had also requested the court to prevent the Greater Chennai Commissioner of Police from interfering with the operations of his digital platform, Savukku Media.
Additional Advocate General, J. Ravindran, stated that both the Home Secretary and the DGP had already reviewed and resolved the representations made by the petitioner.
He added that the YouTuber retained the right to challenge those decisions through appropriate legal avenues.
Justice Velmurugan noted that there was insufficient evidence to support the petitioner’s assertion that the Greater Chennai Commissioner of Police was meddling in the operations of Savukku Media.
He highlighted that the ongoing investigations and numerous pending trials against Shankar provided adequate context for the police’s actions.
In a prior hearing on July 14, the judge had requested the DGP to provide a comprehensive list of all pending criminal cases against the petitioner.
In compliance, the DGP submitted a report on Tuesday indicating that a total of 38 criminal cases had been filed against Shankar.
Out of these, 13 are under investigation, 24 are awaiting trial, and only one case has been closed.
After reviewing the submissions, the court instructed both the police and the trial courts to ensure the swift resolution of all pending proceedings.