'Refrain from making public statements': SC to Naidu and AP govt in FiberNet case

The Supreme Court has directed former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu to ensure that he did not make any statement in the public domain about the pendency of his petition in the FiberNet scam case.

New Delhi:The Supreme Court Tuesday asked the former chief minister of Andhra Pradesh and TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu and the Andhra Pradesh police to refrain from making any public statements in connection with the FiberNet case.

At the beginning of the hearing, senior advocate Ranjit Kumar, representing the Andhra Pradesh government, contended before a bench comprising Justices Aniruddha Bose and Bela M Trivedi that despite express direction from the apex court in the Skill Development Corporation case, Naidu has been making statements in public.

The apex court asked senior advocate Siddharth Luthra, representing Naidu, to ask his client to refrain from speaking anything about the case in public. Luthra claimed that the state's additional advocate general had held press conferences in Delhi and Hyderabad. Luthra said the law officer made statements about criminal cases involving Naidu which are being probed by the state police.

After hearing both parties, the bench asked the counsel to advise their clients against making public statements about the pending cases. The apex court was hearing Naidu’s anticipatory bail plea in the FiberNet case. The bench adjourned the matter for January 17.

On October 20, the top court had asked the Andhra Pradesh Police to not arrest the 73-year-old leader in the FiberNet case until it delivered the verdict in the Skill Development Corporation scam case.