Chennai, March 22 -- Senior DMK leader K Ponmudy was on Friday sworn in as Minister by Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi, a day after the Supreme Court's nudge.

Ponmudy, who had been convicted in a disproportionate assets case by the Madras High Court on December 19, 2023, and subsequently lost his position, has now resumed his role as the Tamil Nadu Minister for Higher Education, three months later.

The oath of office and secrecy was administered to Ponmudy by Ravi at a modest ceremony at the Raj Bhavan. The event was attended by Chief Minister M K Stalin and several other ministers, including Udhayanidhi Stalin and Ma Subramanian.

Ponmudy was entrusted with the higher education portfolio, which was temporarily overseen by Backward Classes Minister R S Rajakannappan. Rajakannappan has now resumed his previous role overseeing the Khadi and Village Industries Board.

In the past, R Gandhi also managed the Khadi subject, in addition to his Handlooms and Textiles portfolio. Following Ponmudy's conviction in December, there was a reshuffling of portfolios.

The swearing-in of Ponmudy as Minister signifies the resolution of a dispute between Stalin and Ravi. Stalin had previously requested Ravi to induct Ponmudy as a minister and assign him higher education on March 13. However, the Governor declined, stating that Ponmudy's conviction was merely suspended, not annulled.

This led the DMK administration to approach the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court, after hearing the case, expressed grave concern over Governor Ravi's refusal to reinstate Ponmudy, even after his conviction was suspended.

The court ordered him to resolve the issue within 24 hours.

The Supreme Court bench, led by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, noted that Ravi was defying the court's order.

They questioned how the Governor could claim that reinstating Ponmudy would be against constitutional morality. They warned that if they did not receive a response by the next day, they would issue an order directing the Governor to act in accordance with the Constitution.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.