CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has cancelled the bail granted to 12 persons who were arrested in connection with the murder of Armstrong.
Armstrong, the then State president of the Bahujan Samaj Party, was hacked to death near his residence in 2024. In this case, the police charge-sheeted 29 persons, including the notorious rowdy Nagendran and his son Aswathaman. Of them, 27 were arrested, while two are absconding. The prime accused, Nagendran, died due to health complications.
Later, the Chennai Principal Sessions Court granted bail to 14 persons, including key accused Aswathaman and Anjalai. Challenging the grant of bail, the police filed petitions before the High Court seeking cancellation of the bail granted to the accused. A similar petition was also filed by Armstrong's wife, Porkodi.
The petitions came up for hearing before Justice K Rajasekar. Additional Public Prosecutor R Muniyapparaj, appearing for the police, submitted that because the case is still at the stage of framing of charges, granting bail at this juncture could result in witnesses being influenced.
Accepting the submissions of the prosecutor, the Court set aside the bail granted to 12 of the accused, excluding Anjalai and Malarkodi.
The Court further directed that the accused, including Aswathaman, Hariharan and Pradeep, whose bail has been cancelled, shall surrender before the Principal Sessions Court, Chennai, on or before March 6.