Pending culpable homicide case back in the spotlight

PATIALA: Navjot Singh Sidhu’s resignation from the Rajya Sabha has once again drawn public attention towards a culpable homicide case pending against him in a 1988-road

PATIALA: Navjot Singh Sidhu’s resignation from the Rajya Sabha has once again drawn public attention towards a culpable homicide case pending against him in a 1988-road rage incident.

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The case has been pending before the Supreme Court (SC) since 2007 after Sidhu challenged the Punjab and Haryana high court’s verdict in the matter.

The high court had held Sidhu guilty of culpable homicide in 2006 and sentenced him to three years in prison.

The Supreme Court’s decision in the case will have major ramifications on Sidhu’s political journey and in turn on Punjab’s political set-up. An acquittal will propel Sidhu’s career whereas a conviction will bring it to an abrupt stop.

The all-important case pertains to a scuffle between Sidhu and Patiala resident Gurnam Singh that broke out after Singh tried to overtake the vehicle in which Sidhu was travelling. Singh had died after the physical altercation.

Sidhu had pleaded innocence in the case, claiming that he was falsely implicated.