Daijiworld Media Network - Puttur (SP)

Puttur, Aug 11: Apprehending heavy fine, former president of town municipal council here, Nellikatte Jagadish Shetty and five others, who had gone to Supreme Court on appeal against a judgment delivered by the state high court against them, have withdrawn their case during the period it was still in the hearing stage.

It is learnt that the six former councillors decided against pursuing with their case, to avoid payment of hefty fine.

Nellikatte Jagadeesh Shetty, who was with Congress, with support from Congress councillors, Naveenchandra Naik, Deeksha Pai, Seema Gangadhar, Kamala Anand and Rekha Yashodhar as well as BJP councillors, had fought against official candidate of the Congress, H Muhammed Ali, on September 30, 2015. Shetty had come out victorious in the election and became the president.

Defeated candidate, Muhammed Ali, had filed a case under anti-defection law against Jagadeesh Shetty and five others in the court of the district deputy commissioner (DC). The DC court had ordered disqualification of the memberships of the six councillors. Even after they filed a writ petition against this order in the high court, the high court had upheld the order of the DC court.

The case was referred to Supreme Court through an appeal by the defendants. Notices were served to the petitioners and defendants. The councillors, it is learnt, were sounded in the meantime about the possibility of the two-member bench of the Supreme Court levying heavy fine during hearing under anti-defection law. Therefore, they decided to withdraw the appeal before it came up for hearing, it is gathered.