New Delhi : The Supreme Court Tuesday asked BJP leader Subramanian Swamy to approach the Karnataka High Court with his plea to appear as an intervener in Tamil Nadu’s former chief minister Jayalalithaa’s appeal challenging her conviction and sentencing in a corruption case.
“What transpired in the high court, we are not aware of it. Ask them (high court) to pass an order, then we will clarify it,” said a bench of Chief Justice H.L.Dattu, Justice A.K.Sikri and Justice R.K.Agrawal as Swamy urged the court that he be permitted to be an intervener in the hearing of the appeal by Jayalalithaa so that he could make oral and written submissions.
“Last time we had said that you will be allowed to assist the special public prosecutor,” Chief Justice Dattu told Swamy as he said the court ruled he cannot be allowed to make oral and written submissions.
“That will be re-writing the Code of Criminal Procedure. We will not permit it,” the court said as Swamy tried to impress the court that he be allowed to be an intervener in Jayalalithaa’s appeal against her and others’ conviction in a disproportionate assets case.
At this, Swamy told the court that it was not just a criminal case but a corruption case under Prevention of Corruption Act.
Apparently not persuaded by Swamy’s submissions, the court asked him to approach the high court with his plea, get an order and then approach the apex court.
A Bangalore court had Sep 27 convicted Jayalalithaa and her aides Sasikala Natrajan, V.K. Sudhakaran and J. Ilavarasi, in a disproportionate assets case involving Rs. 66.65 crores relating to the period from 1991 to 1966 when she became Tamil Nadu chief minister for the first time.
The trial court sentenced Jayalalithaa to a four jail term and Rs.100 crore fine.