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Chandrababu Naidu's Case Hearing : Live Updates From Supreme Court [Day 3]

LIVELAW NEWS NETWORK

10 Oct 2023 4:31 AM GMT

    • Chandrababu Naidus Case Hearing : Live Updates From Supreme Court [Day 3]

    The Supreme Court will continue hearing today former Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu's petition to quash FIR in relation to skill development scam case.This is the third day of hearing before a bench of Justices Aniruddha Bose & Bela Trivedi. Report of yesterday's hearing can be read here. The first day's hearing report can be read here.The prime point raised by Naiud's lawyers...

    The Supreme Court will continue hearing today former Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu's petition to quash FIR in relation to skill development scam case.

    This is the third day of hearing before a bench of Justices Aniruddha Bose & Bela Trivedi. Report of yesterday's hearing can be read here.  The first day's hearing report can be read here.

    The prime point raised by Naiud's lawyers is regarding the applicability of Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, which was inserted after the 2018 amendment. As per this section, no investigation under the PC Act can be launched against a public servant without obtaining prior sanction from the competent authority. Naidu's lawyers argue that the FIR against him and his arrest are illegal since the Governor's sanction was not obtained by the AP CID before adding the former Chief Minister as an accused.

    The Andhra Pradesh High Court rejected the contention by holding that Section 17A was not applicable to the case before the alleged offences were committed before the 2018 amendment. Naidu challenges this reasoning of the High Court by arguing that it is the date of the registration of the FIR which matters for the applicability of Section 17A. The FIR in this case was registered in December 2021. In response, the State has taken a plea that the inquiry in relation to the offence started prior to the 2018 amendment. Naidu's lawyers dispute this factual claim.

    During the hearing yesterday, the bench asked whether it can adopt an interpretation of Section 17A which will defeat the purpose of the Prevention of Corruption Act. In response, Senior Advocate Harish Salve, for Naidu, stated that Section 17A was intended as a protection to a public servant from harassment by the police after a change in the government.

    Live-updates from today's hearing can be followed in this page.

    Live Updates

    2023-10-10 04:31:20
    • 10 Oct 2023 6:21 AM GMT

      Salve: Sections which were applied: IPC S 120B (criminal conspiracy), S 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), S 465 (forgery), etc., as well as PC Act S 12 (punishment for abetment of offences) and S 13 (criminal misconduct by a public servant). My submission is that PC Act cannot be taken out in this case.

      Salve: If you take out PC Act, then special court cannot do anything. If their submission is that take PC Act out, then they will have to go to a magistrate and this order goes anyway.

    • 10 Oct 2023 6:19 AM GMT

      Salve: Nub of the allegation is that [Naidu], who was then the chief minister obtained pecuniary advantage during his tenure...

    • 10 Oct 2023 6:11 AM GMT

      Salve refers to Ebha Arjun Jadeja (2019) in which non-compliance with provision mandating prior sanction was considered to be fatal to inquiry under TADA Act -

      Salve: Today, we are challenging FIR registered, which is one common rumbled up FIR...

      Trivedi J: What are other offences?

    • 10 Oct 2023 6:05 AM GMT

      Salve: One last point remains: Mixing up of allegations, and its consequences. There are three cases on this, but I want to read one of them.

      Refers to Ebha Arjun Jadeja (2019).

    • 10 Oct 2023 6:03 AM GMT

      Salve (referring to Davinder Pal Singh Bhullar): This is the correct principle and I rely strongly on it.

    • 10 Oct 2023 6:02 AM GMT

      Salve reads out from Davinder Pal Singh Bhullar (2011) -

      "It is a settled legal proposition that if initial action is not in consonance with law, all subsequent and consequential proceedings would fall through for the reason that illegality strikes at the root of the order."

    • 10 Oct 2023 5:57 AM GMT

      Salve: If I'm right, what is the consequence? Application for remand had to be preceded by governor's sanction. Before they started inquiring into role of a public servant, they should have gone and taken governor's assent. This is clear.

    • 10 Oct 2023 5:56 AM GMT

      Salve: Now let's look at high court decisions...

      Bose J: If it's the same proposition that #SupremeCourt has dealt with, then the SC judgment is good enough.

    • 10 Oct 2023 5:55 AM GMT

      Salve refers to a recent judgment in which it was held that Article 20(1) of the Constitution did not bar retrospective application of procedural changes in criminal trial.

    • 10 Oct 2023 5:47 AM GMT

      Salve referring to Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 -

      This statute does not deal with any rights. Police does not have a right to investigate, but a duty to investigate.

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