The Madras High Court on Friday allowed plea of ​​three accused in the 2017 Kodanad estate robbery and murder case seeking summons of former chief minister and AIADMK general secretary Edappadi Palaniswami and leader expelled, VK Sasikala, as defense witnesses.

Justice P Velmurugan passed the orders based on a criminal review petition filed by three accused in the case against a 2021 order of the Nilgiris Principal District Court. The lower court had rejected the accused’s request to summon nine persons, including EPS and Sasikala, and seven persons for examination as defense witnesses. The lower probe allowed examination of only one of the nine, Natarajan, the manager of the Kodanad Estate owned by late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa.

The High Court on Friday allowed examination of all remaining witnesses, besides EPS and Sasikala, based on the review plea of ​​the three accused – A Santosh Same, D Dheebu, MS Satheesan.

The judge said, “The petitioners have sought examination of Mr. Edappadi K Palaniswami, which they claim is essential for finding out the truth. The petitioner further claims that the incident took place in the bungalow of former chief minister Selvi J Jayalalithaa.

“During her visits to Kodanad, Edappadi K Palaniswami, who was a minister, had probably accompanied her. It is therefore possible that he knows the bungalow. This Court finds that the reasons given by the learned counsel are reliable. In view of these facts, and in the interest of justice in order to conduct a fair trial, this Court finds that the petitioners’ application cannot be dismissed as vexatious,” the judge said.

EPS is yet to be questioned over the matter and has often said that the ruling DMK is trying to frame him. The Kodanad Tea Estate in Tamil Nadu’s Nilgiris district was Jayalalithaa’s summer residence and sometimes she worked there even when she was in office.

On the night of April 23, 2017, a group of 10 men stabbed Om Bahadur, a security guard at Kodanad Estate, to death. They broke into the bungalow and allegedly looted the premises. After the police made arrests in the case, the trial began in October 2019 in the Nilgiris sessions court (district).

The case is shrouded in mystery. A week after the break-in, on April 28, two of the main accused met with separate road accidents: C Kanagaraj, Jayalalithaa’s driver, died on the spot near Salem and KV Sayan escaped seriously injured, but his wife and daughter died. on the spot while they were on their way to Kerala.

With PTI inputs