SC reserves verdict on Sidhu's conviction in road rage case
New Delhi, April 18: The Supreme Court on Wednesday reserved its judgment on a plea filed by Punjab Tourism Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu against a three-year jail term awarded to him in a 30-year-old road rage case.
A bench of Justice J. Chelameswar and Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul reserved the judgment after hearing arguments from counsels of the Punjab government and Sidhu and his cousin.
The incident dates to December 27, 1988, when Sidhu and his cousin had beaten up Gurnam Singh and two other in what was described as a road rage case. Singh later died.
On April 12, the state government supported the decision of the Punjab and Haryana High Court convicting the minister. It told the apex court that 65-year-old victim had died after a fist blow from the cricketer-turned-politician.
The state said there was no evidence at all to suggest that Singh died of a cardiac arrest and not a brain haemorrhage. In 1999, the trial court in Patiala had acquitted Sidhu and his cousin saying the medical report stated the death was due to a heart attack.
The High Court in December 2006 had overturned the lower court's decision.
It said Singh did not die of cardiac arrest but due to the injury on his temporal lobe. Sidhu was awarded three years in jail for culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
The apex court in 2007 had stayed the conviction after counsel appearing for Sidhu had contended that the findings of the High Court were based on opinion and not on medical evidence.
Sidhu's lawyer argued that there were deficiencies in the medical evidence and the prosecution witnesses had given different statements on oath before the trial court.
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PM Modi speaks to Iranian president, discusses 'serious' situation in West Asia
New Delhi (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday night spoke to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian over the phone and discussed the "serious situation" in West Asia.
Modi expressed deep concern over the escalation of tensions in the region and the loss of civilian lives as well as damage to civilian infrastructure.
The prime minister told the Iranian President that the safety and security of Indian nationals, along with the need for unhindered transit of goods and energy, remain India's top priorities.
“Had a conversation with Iranian President, Dr Masoud Pezeshkian, to discuss the serious situation in the region. Expressed deep concern over the escalation of tensions and the loss of civilian lives as well as damage to civilian infrastructure,” Modi said in a post on X.
The prime minister also reiterated India's commitment to peace and stability and urged dialogue and diplomacy to end the crisis.
The prime minister had spoken to leaders of several West Asian countries in the last 10 days in the wake of the coordinated offensive launched against Iran by the United States and Israel, in which the Islamic country's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, was killed last month.
In retaliation, Iran has fired drones and missiles at Israel and US military installations around the Gulf region, including the global business and aviation hubs of Dubai and Doha.
Modi earlier spoke to the leaders of Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Jordan, Israel and Qatar, and expressed concern over the attacks on their countries, and condemned the violation of some nation’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
He also discussed the welfare and security of the Indian community residing in those countries.
Around 1 crore Indians live in the Gulf and West Asia. While about 10,000 Indian citizens live, study and work in Iran, more than 40,000 live in Israel.
