In a setback to MDMK Chief Vaiko, a special court has convicted the 75-year-old leader in a sedition case dating back to 2009. The special court judge J Shanthi sentenced Vaiko to one year in jail and Rs 10,000 fine.
According to MDMK leader Nanmaran, Vaiko has been granted a suspension of sentence for one month under CrPC 389, that allows suspension of sentence pending an appeal by a convicted person. Vaiko was expected to file his nomination for the Rajya Sabha election on Saturday. However, some experts say that since sedition is not listed as one of the offenses under the Representation of People's Act, 1951 for which disqualification is attracted regardless of the prison term, he may be allowed to contest. As per the Representation of People's Act 1951, someone who is convicted of an offense and is sentenced to imprisonment for two years or more, they are disqualified from contesting elections, for six years after their release.