3 AIADMK men sentenced to death in Dharmapuri Case

Salem(Tamil Nadu), Feb 16: A Local Court here today sentenced three main accused in the sensational Dharmapuri bus burning case to death.

Delivering the verdict in a packed courtroom, Additional District Sessions Judge D Krishna Raja found Nedu alias Nedunchezhian (41), Madhu alias Ravindran (44) and Muniappan (52) of the AIADMK guilty of murder and sentenced them to death by hanging.

The three accused were also asked to pay Rs 59,000 each as fine under Sec 307 of the IPC (abetment of murder) on 46 counts. The court also sentenced 24 accused to rigorous imprisonment for seven years and three months and also imposed a fine of Rs 13,000 on each. One more accused, Mani, has been sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for seven years and nine months and ordered to pay fine of Rs 13,000.

Three girl students of the Tamil Nadu Agriculture University (TNAU) were charred to death when their bus was set on fire in Dharmapuri district on February two, 2000, by a mob in the aftermath of the conviction of former chief minister J Jayalalithaa in the Pleasant Stay Hotel Case.

Yesterday, the court found guilty all but two of the 30 accused in the case. The three AIADMK men, who were awarded death sentence, were found guilty of committing serious offences such as murder and attempt to murder. While two of the accused were acquitted, one died during the trial.

The 25 other accused including Former AIADMK Dharmapuri Union Secretary and First Accused T K Rajendran were found guilty of various offences including those under the Tamil Nadu Public Property (Prevention of Destruction) Act.

Special Public Prosecutor R Srinivasan requested the court to treat it as the rarest of the rare cases wherein the accused were involved in the henious crime of buring three girl students alive and sought capital punishment.

On a petition filed by N P Veerasamy, father of one of the victims, Kokilavani, Madras High Court transferred the case to Salem from Krishanagiri and ordered fresh trial.

UNI

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