Making some carping comments on Tamil Nadu Government saying it has "no business in Pondicherry Court", the Supreme Court on Monday stayed the trial of Sankararaman murder case in which Kanchi Sankaracharya Jayendra Saraswati is a main accused.
"The Pondichery court shall not proceed with the trial of the case till further order," a bench comprising Justice KG Balakrishnan and Justice DK Jain said after the seer alleged that the state government was continuing with its prosecutor though the trial of the case was shifted to the Union Territory on the direction of the apex court.
Sankaracharya had challenged the Madras High Court order allowing the Tamil Nadu Government to continue with its own prosecutor in the case and had alleged that he was acting in a biased manner.
Accepting the plea of senior advocate Fali Nariman, appearing for the seer, the bench said "Tamil Nadu Government has no business to to go to Pondichery Court to conduct the trial of the case with its own prosecutor".
"Tamil Nadu is no longer the prosecuting state," the bench said disagreeing with state's counsel Rajiv Dhavan that Tamil Nadu will continue to be the prosecution state.
{{/usCountry}}"Tamil Nadu is no longer the prosecuting state," the bench said disagreeing with state's counsel Rajiv Dhavan that Tamil Nadu will continue to be the prosecution state.
{{/usCountry}}He sought to distinguish the seer's case with Zaheera case which was shifted from Gujarat to Maharashtra because of "under prosecution".
However, the bench was not impressed with his argument and remarked, "here it is a case of over prosecution".
Sankaracharya had said that for a just and fair trial, public prosecutor from Pondichery be permitted to appear.
The court on October 26 last year had shifted the trial of case to Pondicherry holding that there was "reasonable apprehension" that the accused will not get justice in the state.