Dissenting SC judgment vindicates our stand: Petitioners
New Delhi, Sep 28 : As the Supreme Court on Friday refused to interfere in the arrest of five rights activists, the five petitioners in the case said that their stand had been "vindicated" by the "dissenting verdict" delivered by Justice D.Y. Chandrachud.
The Supreme Court, by a 2:1 majority judgment, also rejected the plea for a SIT probe into the Bhima-Koregaon case.
The five rights activists, accused of having links with Maoists, were arrested on August 28 by Pune police in connection with a probe into the Bhima-Koregaon violence on January 1.
Addressing the media here, historian Romila Thapar -- who is one of the five petitioners who challenged the arrest of the five activists -- said that due to the top court's judgment the liberty and dignity of the human rights activists had not been "jeopardised" for the time being.
Supreme Court advocate Vrinda Grover, who represented the petitioners, said: "Justice Chandrachud has categorically held that liberty cannot be sacrificed at the altar of conjecture."
Citing Justice Chandrachud, Grover said: "The role of the court seeks particularly sensitive balance when the state seeks to curb the freedom to investigate perceived breaches involving offences against the state."
Economist Prabhat Patnaik said that under "draconian" laws in the country, the accused don't get bail and the trial drags on for years.
"Even if the activists are acquitted after many years, they actually undergo imprisonment," he added.
The five petitioners demanded a fair investigation in the case.
Apart from Romila Thapar, social activist Maja Daruwala, Satish Deshpande, Prabhat Patnaik and Devaki Jain were the five petitioners in the cas
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TN Assembly elections: Eight-month pregnant homemaker wins Thiru Vi Ka Nagar seat for TVK
Chennai (PTI): Before giving birth, she had already delivered a mandate—a symbol of hope for Thiru Vi Ka Nagar.
Echoing Delhi’s 2013 “common citizen” political churn associated with the rise of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), an eight-month-pregnant homemaker, M R Pallavi, has been elected as an MLA from Chennai’s Thiru Vi Ka Nagar constituency, emerging as one of the notable first-time faces of the Vijay-led TVK in the recently held Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.
In the narrow lanes of Thiru Vi Ka Nagar, a steady stream of media personnel has been making their way to Pallavi’s residence—a scene reminiscent of the result day in Delhi when journalists thronged the modest home of Rakhi Birla, who had won from Mangolpuri on an AAP ticket.
Pallavi, 36, a homemaker educated up to class XII, defeated the DMK candidate K S Ravichandran by a margin of 22,333 votes in the reserved Thiru Vi Ka Nagar Assembly constituency.
Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam emerged as the single largest party by winning 108 seats, while DMK and AIADMK got 59 and 47, respectively.
Pallavi’s victory has drawn attention due to her personal circumstances. She campaigned extensively while eight months pregnant, going door-to-door to reach voters.
According to local accounts, she even fainted once during the campaign but continued her outreach.
She has not spoken to the media following her victory, as doctors have advised her to rest. Her husband, Rajesh, briefly recounted her campaign efforts.
A self-professed admirer of actor-turned-politician Vijay, Pallavi joined TVK soon after its formation and is now among its first-time legislators.
Doctors have advised her to be hospitalised around May 20, as she is expecting her second child. Ahead of that, voters in Thiru Vi Ka Nagar have entrusted her with representing them in the state Assembly.
Political observers say the rise of candidates like Pallavi signals a possible shift in Tamil Nadu’s political landscape, with voters backing a new party and candidates from non-traditional backgrounds.
