Hyderabad, December 29: The Andhra Pradesh High Court today reduced the jail term of Siddartha Reddy, convicted in the death case of film actress Pratyusha, but hiked the fine imposed on him by the trial court. Justice N Ravi Shankar reduced the term of rigorous imprisonment awarded to Reddy to two years from five years and increased the fine amount to Rs 50,000 from from Rs 1,000.
Reddy was handed down five-year prison term in February 2004 by the Metropolitan Sessions Judge here after he was found guilty of abetting the suicide of Pratyusha and later attempting to take his own life. Pratyusha, an upcoming actress, was found dead here in February 2002. The case was widely discussed in the media. Reddy, an engineering student, and Pratyusha were childhood friends and had reportedly fallen in love.
However, the Reddy family was said to be opposed to their proposed marriage. According to CBI, which investigated the case, Reddy persuaded the actress to consume poison. She died while undergoing treatment on February 23, 2002. The city police initially filed a case of suspicious death and subsequently altered it to murder.
-PTI