The First Judicial Magistrate Court in Puducherry has issued a stern direction to Tamil Nadu Finance Minister N. Marie Wilson to appear before the court on July 10 to receive the additional charge sheet filed by the Lawspet police in a case relating to the assault of a woman.

Mr. Wilson was supposed to appear before the court on Saturday (July 4, 2026) to receive the charge sheet. However, his advocate informed the court of his inability to appear due to his Ministerial responsibilities. After hearing his advocate, the court directed the Minister to appear “in person without fail,” for receiving the charge sheet and a copy of the data on a pen drive, which was produced by the complainant as evidence for the offence allegedly committed by Mr. Wilson.

The case was filed in 2022 by Careline Claude, wife of the Minister’s brother, who resides in Ezhil Nagar in Puducherry town. She had complained that the Minister had trespassed into her house and assaulted and abused her over a property dispute. 

A case was registered by the Lawspet police after the incident. However, the woman had challenged the First Information Report, saying it invoked only the soft provisions of the law against Mr. Wilson. On the directions of the court, a fresh charge sheet invoking serious provisions was filed by the police. As part of the procedure, the court has directed the accused to appear before it to receive the additional charge sheet.