The Karnataka High Court on Thursday dismissed at the threshold a PIL petition filed by an advocate, who had sought a direction for restraining AIADMK general secretary Jayalaithaa from assuming the post of Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.

Observing that the petition was filed merely on “assumptions and presumptions” based on media reports, and with an intention of “getting publicity”, the court also imposed a fine of Rs. 25,000 on the petitioner, Raviraj Gururaj Kulkarni, a native of Kushtagi taluk in Koppal district.

Citing the statement of the Special Public Prosecutor that acquittal was due to a “glaring arithmetical error” committed by the High Court’s judge in the verdict acquitting Ms. Jayalalithaa in the disproportionate assets case, the petitioner had claimed that allowing her to assume the Chief Minister’s post before “final order” was passed in the DA case would send a wrong message to society that “VVIPs can get away easily.”

A vacation Division Bench comprising Justice A.N. Venugopala Gowda and Justice B. Veerappa, before whom the petition was moved citing urgency, noted that none of the respondents were residing within the territorial jurisdiction of the Karnataka State and the High Court.

Also, the Bench pointed out that the petitioner had failed to make the State of Karnataka, the sole prosecuting agency in the disproportionate assets case, as a respondent besides failing to produce a copy of the High Court verdict acquitting her in the case.