The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Convicted in defamation case

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jan 19, 2005

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Convicted in defamation case

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, JAN. 18. The printer and publisher of the A.P. Times, K. Suresh Kumar, and a reporter, Ch. Susheel Rao, were convicted in a defamation case filed by a senior IAS officer, Rachel Chaterjee. The newspaper is no more in circulation now.

The Metropolitan Sessions Court, Hyderabad, judge, K. Raja Gopal Reddy, sentenced Mr. Suresh Kumar and Mr. Susheel Rao, to undergo simple imprisonment for a period of six months each and penalised Rs. 1,000 and Rs. 500 respectively, according to a press release.

Allowed to move HC

However, they both filed a petition requesting the court to suspend the imprisonment allowing them to move the High Court for an appeal soon after delivery of the judgement on January 12. On hearing the petition, the judge suspended the sentence of imprisonment, the special public prosecutor of the court, T. Narayana Murthi, said.

Case details

A senior IAS officer and the then Commissioner of Sericulture, Rachel Chaterjee, filed a defamation case in the sessions court in 1997 following publication of a series of reports in the newspaper allegedly portraying her as a corrupt officer.

On conclusion of trial, the court acquitted chairman of the paper, M.K. Agarwal, managing director, K.T. Mahi, and the editor, Sam Rajappa, of the charges while holding the printer and reporter guilty of defamation.

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