The bail petition of former chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu in the skill development fraud case has been referred by Justice P. Venkata Jyothirmai of the Andhra Pradesh High Court (HC) to Chief Justice Dhiraj Singh Thakur, who would place it before a suitable bench on October 30.
The judge withdrew from the hearing, citing her conscience as the reason for her inaction. G.V.L. Murthy, an attorney who was seeking to speak on behalf of Mr. Naidu, and his colleague, G. Basaveswara Rao, were married to judicial officers.
Senior advocate Siddharth Luthra was informed by Justice Jyothirmai that although she was constrained by the vacation court’s rules, she recognised the urgency of the bail request due to Mr. Naidu’s health condition.
She did, however, clarify that her observation does not prevent the petitioner from pursuing the remedies allowed by the governing regulations by contacting the registrar judicial to list the petition as soon as possible rather than on October 30, as Mr. Luthra had requested.
Starting on October 25, the HC will be on a three-day Dasara break. The vacation judge assigned to handle bail requests is Justice Jyothirmai.
Justice K. Suresh Reddy had directed that Mr. Naidu’s bail plea be put before a vacation bench during the previous hearing on October 19. It is pertinent to mention that Mr. Naidu on extended judicial remand in the Rajamahendravaram central jail till November 1.
