The Supreme Court had previously deferred the hearing, awaiting a decision on Naidu’s quash petition in the skill development case. The bench, comprising Justices Aniruddha Bose and Bela Trivedi, presided over Naidu’s special leave petition contesting the AP High Court’s rejection of anticipatory bail in the FiberNet scam case last October.
Representing Andhra Pradesh, senior advocate Ranjit Kumar accused Naidu of making political statements regarding the cases against him and his imprisonment, despite a court order in a separate special leave petition. This prior order had barred Naidu from publicly commenting on pending cases related to the skill development scam.
During a previous hearing regarding the state government’s plea challenging an order granting regular bail to Chandrababu in the skill development scam, the top court upheld a bail condition restraining Naidu from discussing sub-judice matters arising from the case.
At Kumar’s urging, Justice Bose requested senior advocate Sidharth Luthra to ensure that Naidu refrains from making any public statements about the pending plea in the FiberNet scam case. In response, Luthra highlighted alleged remarks made by Andhra Pradesh’s additional advocate general concerning the criminal cases against Naidu.
In an attempt to maintain decorum, Justice Bose intervened, instructing both senior counsels to advise their respective clients to maintain silence in the public domain regarding the ongoing cases, including the FiberNet scam case.