CHENNAI: The Madras High Court on Friday cancelled the bail granted to 12 accused in the murder of BSP leader K Armstrong and ordered them to surrender before the principal sessions court in Chennai on March 6. Justice K Rajasekar passed the order while allowing petitions filed by Porkodi, Armstrong’s wife.
The principal sessions court had granted bail to Aswathaman, Pradeep, Ariharan, Sathish Kumar, Siva, Appu, Mugilan, Noor alias Vijayakumar, Vignesh, Rajesh, Gopi and Kumara alias Senthilkumar after the high court transferred the probe to the CBI and quashed the chargesheet in 2025. However, the Supreme Court, on an appeal, stayed part of the high court order quashing the chargesheet.
Porkodi, in her petition seeking cancellation of bail, contended that the bail orders were passed by the principal sessions court without considering the facts and circumstances of the case in totality and solely on the ground of long incarceration of the respondents.
She said the chargesheet filed by the Greater Chennai Police is still operational and the cognisance taken by the trial court is intact in view of the order passed by the Supreme Court on October 10, 2025. The sessions judge failed to consider the order made in SLP by the Supreme Court which stayed the quashing of the chargesheet.
Since the cognisance taken by the trial court is intact, therefore there is no change in circumstances to entertain the bail application, the petition said. It further stated that if the bail is not cancelled, the witnesses will not be in a proper position to depose in the case.