The Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the conviction of Gudipalli Siddhartha Reddy for abetment of suicide in the 23-year-old death case of Telugu/Tamil actress Prathyusha. The Court rejected allegations of murder and rape raised in connected proceedings.
A Bench of Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justice Manmohan dismissed Reddy’s appeal challenging his conviction. The Bench also rejected the plea filed by P. Sarojini Devi, the actress’s mother, who alleged that her daughter had been murdered.
Court Rules Out Murder and Rape
While delivering the verdict, the Bench categorically ruled out death by strangulation and held that medical and ocular evidence conclusively established poisoning as the cause of death.
The Court observed:
“One is, murder by strangulation is ruled out. Two, overwhelming ocular and medical evidence proves death due to poisoning. Three, the offence of rape against the appellant accused is not made out. Four, at the belated stage, it is difficult to allege that the cause of death was rape and strangulation… defence of accidental consumption rejected. Abetment by purchase of neurontone established.”
The Bench rejected the defence of accidental consumption and held that the purchase of neurontone established abetment.
Observations on Postmortem Report
The Court noted that Dr B. Muni Swamy submitted what it described as an “unprofessional” postmortem report. It also referred to the “consequences of premature and deliberate publication of the report.”
Although Dr Muni Swamy had opined that strangulation caused the death, the prosecution did not examine him during trial proceedings.
Background of the Case
According to the prosecution, Prathyusha and Reddy were in a relationship that Reddy’s parents opposed. The case alleged that both consumed poison together. While Prathyusha died, Reddy survived.
The trial court convicted Reddy for abetment of suicide and attempt to suicide and sentenced him to five years’ imprisonment. In 2004, the Andhra Pradesh High Court reduced the sentence to two years.
Reddy later approached the Supreme Court challenging his conviction for abetment of suicide. Separately, Sarojini Devi challenged the High Court’s reduction of sentence and alleged that her daughter had been raped and poisoned.
During the pendency of the appeals, the Supreme Court granted bail to Reddy.
Final Directions
Rejecting the rape allegation, the Bench observed that a “surviving partner in a mutual suicide pact is legally culpable.”
The Court dismissed the appeal on merits, passed no order as to costs, and directed the appellant to surrender within four weeks.
Appearance
Senior Advocates Nagamuthu and L. Narasimha Reddy appeared for the accused.
Senior Advocate Nachiketa Joshi represented the CBI.
Advocate Gireesh Kumar appeared for P. Sarojini Devi.
