Chennai, July 9:
The Madras High Court has exempted Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Mary Wilson from appearing in person before a Puducherry court in connection with a case involving an alleged assault on his brother over a property dispute.
The case dates back to August 8, 2022, when Wilson was accused of forcibly entering the residence of his brother, Mary Kuloth, in Ezhil Nagar, Puducherry, and assaulting him and his wife, Caroline. Based on the complaint, the Lawspet police registered a case, which is currently under trial in the First Judicial Magistrate Court in Puducherry.
During the proceedings, the Puducherry court had directed the minister to appear in person to receive a copy of the charge sheet. However, Wilson failed to appear despite repeated summons, prompting the court to order his mandatory appearance on July 10.
Challenging this, Wilson approached the Madras High Court seeking to quash the case and also requested exemption from personal appearance before the Puducherry court.
When the plea came up for hearing before Justice Ilanthiraiyan, the minister’s counsel submitted that the matter was a family dispute and expressed willingness to resolve it amicably. Accepting the submission, the judge referred the case to the High Court Mediation Centre.
The court directed Mary Wilson, along with his father, brother, and sister-in-law, to appear before the mediation centre on July 13. Meanwhile, the High Court granted interim relief by exempting the minister from appearing before the Puducherry court on July 10.