A three-judge Bench of the Supreme Court headed by Justice Dipak Misra will hear from April 21 the petition on whether G. Bhavani Singh can continue as Special Public Prosecutor in the disproportionate case against former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa. The other judges on the Bench are Justice R.K. Agrawal and Justice Prafulla C. Pant. Two days ago, the court had said in an administrative notice that a three-member Bench would commence hearing on April 21, but the judges were not named. The matter now figures in the court’s website in list of cases posted before Mr. Justice Misra’s Bench for that day.
The need to form a larger Bench arose after a two-member Bench rendering a split verdict on the question, with Justice Madan B. Lokur holding that Mr. Singh, whose appointment has been challenged by DMK general secretary K. Anbazhagan, had no authority to appear for the prosecution, and Justice R. Banumathi upholding his appointment and continuance. They referred the matter to a larger Bench for a decision.
As a result, the verdict on the appeal by Ms. Jayalalithaa and three others in the Karnataka High Court against their conviction has been delayed. The Supreme Court has extended an earlier deadline to the High Court to dispose of the appeal until May 12. The High Court has reserved orders on the appeal after completing lengthy hearings, but in the event of Mr. Bhavani Singh’s appointment being invalidated, the matter will have to be heard again.
Hearing will begin on April 21 to decide on Bhavani Singh’s continuance as Prosecutor in Jayalalithaa case
