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Copies of chargesheet given to Sankaracharya, others
The court also fixed April 5, 2005 for examination of Ravi Subramaniam, the accused-turned-approver in the case.
A local court on Thursday handed over copies of the chargesheet in the Sankararaman murder case to all the 24 accused, including Kanchi Sankaracharya Jayendra Saraswati and his deputy Vijayendra Saraswati, seventy days after charges were framed in the case.
The court also fixed April 5, 2005 for examination of Ravi Subramaniam, the accused-turned-approver in the case.
However, Judicial Magistrate G Uthamaraj said pending applications, including the one by Appu alias Krishnasamy, asking for the copies of chargesheet in Telugu, would be taken up first on that day and directed all the accused to be present in the court.
The defence counsel objected when Ravi too was given a copy of the chargesheet pleading that approvers were not entitled for copies. Ravi later returned the copy given to him.
The 1,873-page chargesheet was filed by the Superintendent of Police K Premkumar on January 21 and the copies could not be served on four occasions when the accused appeared before the court as the work was delayed since it was voluminous.
Jayendra Saraswati came from Kalavai, where he has been staying since his release on bail from the Vellore prison on January 11, around 10.30 am. Vijayendra Saraswati, who secured bail in the case on February 10, had arrived a short while earlier. Three other accused had also secured bail.
Eighteen other accused, lodged in the Chennai Central Prison, were brought by the police to the court, in the morning.
Moving an application for providing copies of the chargesheet in Telugu to Appu, advocate Rajarathanam contended that his client did not understand Tamil.
Observing that Appu had studied up to class XI in a Telugu medium school, the advocate said the Madras High Court had allowed a plea from Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa's close aide Sasikala for providing her copies of a chargesheet against her in a criminal case.
Opposing Appu's request, special public prosecutor Bala Shanmugam said the petition was not maintainable at the present stage. The accused could move the court at the time of trial, he contended.
