YSR Congress leader and Member of Parliament Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy will have to be in jail for some more time with the Supreme Court on Friday dismissing his bail plea in the alleged multi-crore disproportionate assets case against him.
A bench of justices Aftab Alam and Ranjana Prakash Desai ruled that Jagan can apply for bail only after the CBI completes its investigation in all the seven other cases lodged against him.
“The contours are much larger,” the bench observed while refusing to entertain the persistent plea of senior counsel Gopal Subramaniam, who appeared for Mr. Jagan.
Responding to queries from the bench, the CBI said it would complete the investigation by March 31, 2013. However, it later told the bench that it would try to complete it much more expeditiously.
The apex court passed the order after Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Mohan Parasaran and senior counsel Ashok Bhan appearing for the CBI contended that Mr. Jagan cannot be granted bail as investigations were still underway in seven cases against him and letter rogatories have been issued to various countries as the cases have international ramifications.
Responding to queries from the bench, Mr. Parasaran said the total amount accumulated by Mr. Jagan and his associates, insofar as the four charge sheets have been filed, amounted to over Rs 3000 crore.
He submitted it would not be proper to release Mr. Jagan at this stage as the case “is a very serious economic offence that is unparalleled. The accused is also known for his political prowess. The saga of investigations is still continuing.”
“They are so influential that they can influence the witnesses even while being inside,” the ASG said.
Mr. Parasaran’s argument, however, was countered by Subramaniam who said bail was a statutory right and Mr. Jagan was entitled to the same as otherwise it would violate his right under article 21 of the Constitution.
Keywords: YSR Congress chief Jaganmohan Reddy, bail application, disproportionate assets case, Supreme court
It is an awfully amazing observation by these judges.While it is
true that the investigative agencies should have a level playing field
to carry out their tasks, it is painful to note that the apex court
should rule as this as it would become a matter of abuse by our
notorious investigative agencies to deny the fundamental liberty to an
accused of bail.
Their lordships should have mentioned a strict time frame and also
should not arbitrarily close the fundamental right of application of
bail by linking it to an undefined stage of investigation. He should
have not been denied the right to file for Bail. Precluding him from
doing this is against Article 21 of the Constitution.
The agencies cannot have unlimited time to deny the liberties
protected by our Constitution which gives rights even to convicts. It
is very much a new view of the good old Cr.Pc. Reminding ourselves
that we do not accept an confession to a police officer.
It is a set back for our constitutional rights , sadl
Very very good News!!!!!!
Well done SC & CBI. This guy Jagan reddy is so infulential and can do anything from Jail also. As per the media and other information his propety worth around 1 lakh crore. This is very very serious economic offence. SC & CBI should recover the amount from Jagan and need to use for AP development. People of AP should not elect this kind of Corrupt person as their elected representatives and it will be a shame for people of Kadapa who voted him as MP.
No matter what tricks the cbi,cong and tdp use to stop Jagan he will have the last laugh.
The daring son of Indian soil who has the guts to fight for his rights.
2014 ...end of cong and tdp in AP.
Jai Jagan ....
Hats off! Don’t show any mercy on these guys!
It is good that the SC has denied bail to Jagan. However, one thing needs to be pointed out. The CBI is a tool of the ruling party. Action is initiated by the CBI against a politician for alleged corruption only when that politician falls out of favour with the ruling party. The CBI needs to be an autonomous body.
"total amount accumulated by Mr. Jagan and his associates ....
amounted to over Rs 3000 crore." This is just the tip of the ice berg
and no surprise if this proved to be just a fraction! Is this not a
unique dance of Indian version of "free democracy" "of the people by
the people and for the people?" Jagan is a sitting MP and people of
Andhra over overwhelmingly voted for 15 out of 18 bye elections
contested by YSR Congress, a clear indication of the contempt people
have for the fatal cancer of corruption devouring the country from
within! Churchill was absolutely perfect when remarked that in
independent India" Power will go to the hands of rascals, rogues and
freebooters. All Indian leaders will be of low calibre and men of
straw. They will have sweet tongues and silly hearts. They will fight
amongst themselves for power and India will be lost in political
squabbles."
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