B.V. Acharya, the special public prosecutor in former Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa’s disproportionate assets case, on Monday expressed his unhappiness over the Karnataka High Court’s verdict to acquit the AIADMK supremo of all charges, and claimed that the prosecution was denied an opportunity to place its oral arguments before the court.
Acharya, however, said that it would be premature for him to give complete reaction at the moment, as he did not have a copy of the judgment.
“We are yet to get it. So, unless you read the whole of the judgement, it may not be possible to give a final view of the matter. So, whatever I say now, could only be tentative. According to me, the prosecution has written a very satisfactory evidence to prove the charges against all the accused,” Acharya told ANI here.
“And the evidence mainly consisted of documentary evidence, and coupled with that, the trial judge was discussing the evidence in great detail and accepted that evidence, and recorded a statement of conviction. Now, as against that how the high court has reversed that order, what is the reasoning given by the high court judge, without seeing that, I can’t give a final opinion,” he added.
The special public prosecutor further said that he was not given an opportunity to make oral submissions.
“The Supreme Court after holding that Bhawani Singh cannot continue as the public prosecutor, gave just one day’s time to the state of Karnataka to file the written submission. Even that one day was not to make oral submissions. I was appointed on 27th, only to give written submission within one day…whatever is possible I have done,” Acharya said.
“Now, in a case where there are 259 witnesses and a 2,000 word document and 900 pages of judgement of the trail court…humanly, it is not possible to go through all these things in one day and file a submission. According to me, the principles of natural justice is required that after the court held that the former public prosecutor was not competent to appear and argue and, thereafter, gave an opportunity to the state of Karnataka instead of giving an opportunity to address the arguments before the court,” he added.
Laying emphasis on the role of oral arguments, Acharya said: “Written submission is entirely different from arguing a case before the judge orally. He also enacts to seek your clarification, you can also try to convince the judge if he is not convinced. So, oral arguments have their own importance. Now, that has been denied in this case to the prosecution. In fact, to put it very briefly the prosecution has been denied opportunity to put oral arguments in the entire appeals.”
Jayalalithaa was today acquitted by the Karnataka High Court in the disproportionate assets case against her. The verdict came on the appeal filed by Jayalalithaa and three others, including her aide Sasikala in the case.
Today’s judicial outcome is a major setback to the opposition DMK and is expected to swing political fortunes in favour of the ruling AIADMK in Tamil Nadu, which goes to assembly polls in about a year.
A trial court had on September 27 last year verdict sentenced Jayalalithaa and three others to four years in jail and imposed a hefty fine of Rs. 100 crore on her and Rs. 10 crore each on three others.
Meanwhile, massive celebrations have broken out across Tamil Nadu following the verdict.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam along with his Cabinet colleagues and senior AIADMK leaders joined the celebrations outside Jayalalithaa’s Poes Garden residence in Chennai. The AIADMK cadres raised slogans in support of ‘Amma’, distributed sweets and burst crackers. (ANI)