New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday exempted the former Tamil Nadu Minister P. Balakrishna Reddy from surrendering in a criminal case in which he has been convicted to undergo three years imprisonment.
A Bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Sanjiv Khanna stayed the Madras High Court order refusing to grant exemption from surrendering in the case following his conviction. The Bench will later hear the appeal against the High Court order refusing to stay the conviction and sentence.
The case pertains to a case of protest near Hosur in 1998 when members of the public agitated against spurious liquor being brewed in the region. According to reports, 108 members were accused of throwing stones at government vehicles including police vans. There were allegations of arson against the protesters. Over 20 years later, 16 demonstrators were convicted in the case.
In his appeal Mr. Reddy contended that apart from the evidence provided by a single prosecution witness, there is nothing else to prove the charges against him and all the charges are attributed only against the first accused, Govinda Reddy. He also contended that he alone could not be blamed for the violence, as there were many onlookers when the incident happened. Moreover, mere participation in the protest could not make him guilty of the violence.
The special court in Chennai hearing cases against MPs and MLAs sentenced Mr. Reddy to three years with a fine of Rs. 10,000, paving the way for his disqualification as an MLA under the provisions of the Representation of the People Act. His appeal against this conviction is pending in the Madras High Court which refused to stay the conviction. The present appeal is directed against this order.
