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Madras court sentence in colour TV case suspended

The Supreme Court today suspended the sentence of five years rigorous imprisonment imposed by a Madras special court on former Tamil Nadu chief secretary N Hari Bhaskar, one of the seven accused convicted in the Rs 10 crore colour TV case in which AIADMK supremo J Jayalalitha had been acquitted.

The vacation bench comprising Justices K T Thomas and M B Shah suspended the sentence and also granted interim bail to him while disposing of his special leave petition against the Madras high court orders refusing him bail.

The court made it clear that if Bhaskar happened to prolong the hearing or appeal for which the high court has suggested two months, it would be open to the state government to seek rescinding of today's order of the court.

The court earlier recorded a plea of additional solicitor-general Altaf Ahmed appearing for the Tamil Nadu government that the high court itself had said that the appeal in the case would be heard in two months. Suspension of the sentence may lead to adoption of dilatory tactics by the petitioner.

The appeal of the petitioner against the judgment of the special court is pending before the high court. The state government had also filed an appeal before the high court against the special court judgment acquitting Jayalalitha.

Besides Bhaskar, two IAS officers and former Tamil Nadu minister and AIADMK parliamentarian Selvaganapathy were sentenced in the case.

UNI

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