The Supreme Court on Monday refused to entertain a writ petition challenging the continuation of Bhavani Singh as Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) in the criminal appeals filed by the former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa, and three others, sentenced to four years in jail in the disproportionate assets case.
A Bench, led by Chief Justice of India H.L. Dattu, allowed advocate G.S. Mani, a member of the Vijaykanth-led DMDK, to withdraw his petition and allowed him to approach the Karnataka High Court with his plea. “Can you not go before the High Court with this,” the Chief Justice asked Mr. Mani.
The CJI observed that, like the Supreme Court, the High Court was also endowed with powers to take decisions.
The petition said the SPP was appointed after the case was transferred from Chennai to a Bengaluru court. There was a specific directive that the SPP be appointed by the Karnataka government in consultation with the Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court. On October 7, when the bail petitions of Ms. Jayalalithaa and the three other accused were heard in the High Court, Mr. Singh submitted that he had no objection to granting them conditional bail, contrary to his earlier affidavit strongly opposing the bail, it said. Mr. Singh’s role in the case established the collusion and illegal intention and motive in order to allow the four convicts to escape from criminal justice.
Contending that Mr. Singh had violated the trust reposed in him as SPP, the petition sought a directive to restrain the DVAC and the Karnataka government from allowing Mr. Singh to represent the prosecution in the High Court.
