NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday adjourned to March 18 the hearing on the plea filed by Former Tamil Nadu Higher Education Minister K Ponmudi against the Madras High Court's order setting aside his acquittal in a disproportionate assets case.
A two-judge Bench of the Apex Court, headed by Justice Abhay S Oka and also comprising Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, deferred the hearing of Ponmudi's appeal to March 18, after noting that the matter needed consideration and a detailed hearing.
The Supreme Court had in January in its decision refused to grant an interim stay on the 3-year jail sentence ordered by the Madras High Court to former DMK minister in the Tamil Nadu govt, Ponmudi and his wife, P Vishalatchi in a DA case.
The former DMK Minister K Ponmudi and his wife, P Vishalatchi had knocked the doors of the Supreme Court on January 3, challenging their conviction and three-year imprisonment in a Rs 1.75-crore DA case.
Ponmudi 73 and Vishalatchi, 68, had filed their respective Special Leave Petitions (SLP) before the Top court challenging their conviction and sentence.
On behalf Ponmudi and his wife, Visalakhi, advocates Agarwala and Pulkit Tare have filed the SLPs before the Top court challenging their conviction and sentence,
They are, in their SLP, sought stay of the order of the Madras HC and exemption from surrendering.
On December 22 last year, the Madras High Court, in its order, had sentenced the senior party leader and state’s higher education minister K Ponmudy and his wife to three-year imprisonment in a Rs 1.75-crore disproportionate assets case.
Justice G Jayachandran of the Madras HC, in the order, held the couple guilty under the Prevention of Corruption (PC) Act, 1988, also imposed a fine of Rs 50 lakh each on Ponmudy and his wife, P Visalatchi.
The court, however, in January had granted the couple one month to surrender before the trial ourt to undergo the prison sentencing in the case. It did so, keeping in view their age and other factors.
Following the order of the Madras HC, which sentenced Ponmudi to three-year prison term, he stands disqualified as a legislator from Thirukoyyilur constituency, in accordance to the Representation of the People (RP) Act.
Ponmudi claimed that the case against him was filed out of vengeance by the previous AIADMK regime and he claimed innocence in the case.