Kochi, Feb 18 (IANS): The Kerala High Court on Tuesday expressed deep concern over the manner in which an FIR was registered against former Kerala High Court Justice, C.N. Ramachandran Nair, in the Rs 1,000 crore CSR funds scam case.

The case was registered against Nair last month by T.A. Shahul Hameed, Sub-Inspector of Police, Perinthalmanna in Malappuram District.

The association of retired Kerala High Court judges last week had condemned this act of the police, as according to them the only reference about Nair in the First Information Statement was that he was the Patron of the NGO that was running the scam, which is false.

On Tuesday a Division Bench of Justice A. Muhamed Mustaque and Justice P. Krishna Kumar while considering a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) on this matter, orally enquired whether the police had registered the FIR against the former judge with proper application of mind.

The court said, “…By the time the damage will be caused to the institution among the public. Who will repair that? You had to apply your mind. We are not concerned with x or y. Ultimately this will directly or indirectly tarnish the image of the institution, everyone must be aware of it.

“We are concerned. We cannot take it lightly...See it’s a constitutional office held by a person. We know the kind of discussion that would generate in the media and the public...we are concerned about it...what is the kind of discussions happening around...everybody does not look at the individual but at the establishment.

“We want to know what basis, tell us if you have materials...this is directly or indirectly affecting the institution...." said the Bench.

The CSR scam, which was the brainchild of Anandhu Krishnan who was the livewire in a NGO, had cheated innocent people all across Kerala.

Krishnan lured victims by promising high-value products like scooters, laptops, and sewing machines at half the market price.

His aggressive promotional campaigns convinced many to invest their savings in what appeared to be an attractive deal.

In the PIL it has been stated that, “Arraying a person of the status of Justice C.N. Ramachandran Nair as an accused in a crime of this nature can only be seen as a conscious attempt, hatched at some level, to destroy public confidence in the judicial system by projecting a false impression about judges who are or were part of the system.”

“Therefore, the steps taken by police officer cannot be treated as an unintended act performed in the due discharge of his functions when, in fact, the action constitutes a deliberate attempt to destroy public confidence in the judicial system,” the PIL stated.

The court clarified that it is not admitting the matter at this stage, but is raising concerns because a person who has held a constitutional office has been named as an accused in an FIR, which could impact the reputation of the institution.

The court has sought instructions from the Director General of Prosecutions, T.A. Shaji regarding the registration of crime against the retired judge and whether the crime was registered after careful consideration of sufficient evidence.

The matter has been posted after two weeks.

The Crime Branch of the Kerala Police has started a detailed probe and on Tuesday the Kochi wing of the Enforcement Directorate raided 12 places across the state associated with K.N. Anandakumar who heads an NGO and Congress leader Laly Vincent who is the counsel of prime accused Krishnan, presently in custody.