On Wednesday, the Madras High Court declared that convicted prisoners opting to present their own arguments without legal representation in their appeals should be allowed to do so via video conference from prison.
A panel comprising Chief Justice SV Gangapurwala and Justice Bharatha Chakravarthy emphasized that incarcerated individuals seeking to argue their appeals must have access to video conferencing facilities, eliminating the necessity of physical presence in court.
“The prison authorities just need to ensure they have an active internet connection. Certainly, VC in an appeal is possible. We do not see a problem if VC facility is to be used specifically for appeals,” the bench said.
During the hearing of a petition submitted by R Subramanian, the founder of the retail chain Subhiksha, the Court noted that Subramanian, convicted by a special court in 2023 for defrauding depositors, is currently serving a 20-year sentence.
Last year, he appealed to the High Court contesting his conviction and requesting various interim measures.
During Wednesday’s proceedings, Subramanian’s legal representative informed the bench that the convicted entrepreneur desired to personally argue certain matters pending before the High Court.
However, the Court stated that a general order granting such permission could not be issued. Instead, it instructed the counsel to provide a list of the petitions and interim requests in which Subramanian intended to participate as a party in person. The Court assured that appropriate orders would be issued based on the submissions provided by the counsel.
The Chief Justice then went on to say that prima facie, he did not see “why VC cannot be allowed in appeals?”
Justice Chakravarthy added that all that was needed to facilitate the same was “an internet connection in the prison.”
The Court will hear the matter further on April 3.
