Supreme Court Denies Relief to Sunil Kedar in Conviction Appeal
Nagpur, India- The Supreme Court of India has refused to help senior Congress leader and former Minister Sunil Kedar. He wanted the court to pause his conviction so he could run in the upcoming Assembly elections. Kedar had already tried and failed to overturn his conviction at the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court.
Kedar's troubles began with the Nagpur District Central Cooperative Bank (NDCC) scam. He and six others were sentenced to five years in prison and fined by the Nagpur District Sessions Court on December 22, 2023. Because of this conviction, Kedar is not allowed to run for elections, as the law disqualifies those sentenced to more than two years in prison.
The Supreme Court's decision means Kedar cannot return to politics right now. However, the court did ask the Nagpur District Sessions Court to speed up the decision on Kedar's appeal against his conviction. This decision should be made by September 30, 2024.
This gives Kedar a possible chance to still run in the elections. If the Sessions Court rules in his favour and either overturns or pauses his conviction, Kedar could become eligible to contest the elections.
Kedar's legal team had first asked the Sessions Court to pause his sentence and grant him bail, but this was denied. He then went to the Bombay High Court, which also rejected his request. With no other option, Kedar took his case to the Supreme Court.
