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Jaya gets a breather as Supreme Court refuses to stay verdict

Former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalitha got a breather today when the Supreme Court refused to stay a judgment of the Madras high court holding that she and her one-time close associate Sasikala -- accused of purchasing land belonging to the Tamil Nadu Small Industries Corporation Limited -- were entitled to copies of material records in Tamil in connection with the trial.

The high court had also held that Jayalalitha, Sasikala, V N Sudhakaran and J Elarasi -- accused in the disproportionate assets case, filed under the Prevention of Corruption Act -- were entitled to copies of the material records of the case in connection with the trial. The case was initiated at the behest of Janata Party president, Dr Subramanian Swamy.

The stay was refused by a division bench comprising Justices G T Nanawati and D P Mohapatra while admitting a special leave petition by the Tamil Nadu government against the impugned judgement dated December 8 last year, delivered by a single judge of the high court.

Earlier, senior council Shanti Bhushan, appearing for the state government, contended that the provisions of section 207 of the Criminal Procedure Code ''did not contemplate that the accused persons should be furnished copies of the material records in their own languages''. The high court judgment would unnecessarily delay the trial of the accused persons in criminal cases.

UNI

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