Satyam case: Court rejects pleas of Raju, others

A local court on Monday rejected as non-maintainable the appeals filed by Satyam scam kingpin B Ramalinga Raju and others challenging a special court's verdict that found him and nine others guilty in the multi-crore rupee accounting fraud in erstwhile Satyam Computer Services Ltd.

The appeals were filed by Raju and others last week in the court of metropolitan sessions judge in Hyderabad requesting setting aside of the special court's judgement and also sought bail.

After arguments, the MSJ court had reserved its order for on Monday on deciding the maintainability of appeals of these cases (whether they should be heard before it or high court) and subsequently returned the appeals as non-maintainable before it on Monday.

Following the order, Raju and others are likely to move the high court.

On April 9, the special court, trying the SCSL accounting fraud, had sentenced Raju and others to seven years rigorous imprisonment after it found them guilty of criminal conspiracy and cheating among other offences in the scam and also imposed a Rs 5.5-crore (Rs 55-million) fine on Raju and his brother Rama Raju.

The special court, set up under PMLA Act and the designated as sessions court had also informed the convicts about their right to file appeal against its judgement, who are now lodged in Cherlapally Central Prison in Hyderabad.