HC rejects plea for narco test on Vijay

HYDERABAD: Special judge B Nagamaruthi Sarma of the CBI court on Thursday dismissed the CBI plea for a narco test on V Vijay Sai Reddy, accused number two in the YSR Congress chief Jaganmohan Reddy’s assets case.
The CBI is seeking a test to find out the technical intricacies involved in the money laundering that allegedly helped the Kadapa MP grow rich, particularly after 2004.Various courts in the country had in the past held that such a test could not be conducted on a person without his consent.
In the present case, the CBI charged the accused with non-cooperation and said that this test was the last option for it to get to the bottom of the truth. Vijay Sai did not agree to the test and, on the other hand, contested it stiffly on the ground that as a person, he had the right to remain silent.
Citing the rulings of the AP High Court and the Supreme Court describing such a test as violative of a person’s fundamental rights, judge Nagamaruthi Sarma rejected the CBI plea.
He said narco test would violate section 161(2) of CrPC and Articles 20(3) and 21 of the Constitution.
This is the second case in which CBI failed to obtain a nod from the courts for narco test. The first one it tried unsuccessfully was on Satyam founder B Ramalinga Raju.
Meanwhile, Justice R Subash Reddy of the AP High Court Thursday directed the state government to continue providing security cover to family members of Vijay Sai.
The judge passed the interim order while dealing with a writ petition filed by Vijay Sai’s daughter and his wife, Sunanda Reddy.