S Shanti, judge of the special court set up for hearing cases involving elected representatives sat stunned on Friday as the accused person whom she had convicted in a case walked towards her and pleaded with her to give him “the maximum and severe punishment”.
The accused was no ordinary person and is known all over for his theatrics and emotional outbursts.
As the judge sat dumbfounded, a visibly upset accused Vayapuri Gopalasami, who is also known as Vaiko, questioned her about an observation she had mentioned in the verdict. The judge has said in the verdict that though Vaiko deserved a severe punishment for the crime committed by him, she was awarding a lighter sentence. This is in the backdrop of a plea by him that his advanced age and health be taken into consideration, the judge said in the verdict.
Vaiko, leader of the pro-LTTE MDMK was sentenced by the judge for one year imprisonment and a fine of Rs 10,000/- for a speech he had made in 2009 against the Central Government.
It was the then DMK Government which had filed the case against him under Section 124 (A) of the IPC that deals with sedition. The prosecution charge was that Vaiko had delivered a provocative speech and had asked the Tamils to wage a war against the Centre for its alleged “help” to the Sri Lankan government in its military action against the LTTE.
What upset Vaiko was the timing of the verdict as he was getting ready to file his nomination for the biennial election to Rajya Sabha from Tamil Nadu scheduled for this month. Interestingly, he is being fielded as a candidate supported by the DMK as his party MDMK has no members in the Assembly.