File pic: Ex-Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala, convicted in teachers' scam
The Supreme Court today regretted that cases of 'VIP' convicts were given preference over poor convicts by courts, as it turned down the plea of former Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala to stay out of jail for health reasons.
Mr Chautala, 77, was sentenced to a 10-year jail term for illegally recruiting over 3,000 junior teachers in Haryana in 2000. His son was among nine others convicted in the case.
The court told the senior Haryana politician, "You were convicted in January this year. But your appeal in the Delhi High court is almost complete. But here in Supreme Court appeals filed in 2005 against death sentences are still in the queue. This is the reason why a poor man feels that the system works only for known persons and unknown persons are ignored. The High court has given special treatment to you. Are we justified in doing so because some big name appears?"
Mr Chautala had cited various ailments to counter a Delhi high court order to surrender by 17 September, but was rebuffed by the top court. "These people who were in power, do they come back and say that I am suffering from many diseases I don't want power? They can't."
The court added scathingly: "if we go by your reasoning, only healthy people will be in jail."
The Delhi High court had suspended Mr Chautala's sentence on medical grounds, after which he was admitted to Medanta Hospital. After the AIIMS panel found Chautala is fine and did not need to be in hospital, the court gave him a deadline to surrender.
The Supreme Court has now directed Mr Chautala to surrender on 23 September.