O. Raja, brother of Finance Minister O. Panneerselvam, has approached the Madras High Court Bench here seeking a direction to a lower court to consider his bail application in a case booked against him under the provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, on the day of surrender itself.
Dalit priest suicide
In his application, Mr. Raja said that the Thenkarai police in Theni district initially booked him and a few others under Section 306 (abetment of suicide) of the Indian Penal Code, following the death of Dalit priest, S. Nagamuthu, in 2012.
Immediately, he applied for anticipatory bail and obtained relief from the High Court on December 18, 2012.
Non-bailable provisions
However, while filing a charge sheet in the case last week, the police also invoked non-bailable provisions under the SC/ST Act against the accused. Since courts would not normally grant advance bail in cases booked under the Act, Mr. Raja expressed his willingness to surrender before a lower court and urged the High Court to order that a bail application, to be filed by him, be disposed of the same day.
