BJP MP Ram Shankar Katheria Sentenced to Two Years in Prison, Likely to Lose Lok Sabha Membership
New Delhi: BJP MP from Etawah, Uttar Pradesh Ram Shankar Katheria was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment and a fine of Rs 50,000 by a special MP/MLA court in Agra on Saturday, LiveLaw reported.
The judgement was delivered in connection with a 12-year-old case of assault and rioting.
In November, 2011 Katheria and a group of his supporters were accused of beating up some employees of Torrent Power Limited in Agra days after the MP received a complaint regarding an “inflated” electricity bill. The court found him guilty of vandalising Torrent Power Limited company's office in Agra's Saket Mall, LiveLaw reported.
“I will challenge the verdict in a higher court. The charges against me are politically motivated, as a majority of witnesses have testified that I was not present at the place mentioned in the police charge she et. The Bahujan Samaj Party government was in power in Uttar Pradesh when the case was registered. A number of fabricated cases were being lodged against me at that time and this was one among them,” Katheria was quoted by the Indian Express as saying after the judgement was delivered.
According to the judgement Katheria has been convicted in the case under IPC sections 147 (rioting) and 323 (voluntarily causing hurt). The court said that his sentence would be extended by three months if the accused does not deposit the fine, LiveLaw reported.
“My client is innocent. We are ready to take the case to a higher court and will continue our legal efforts till he is proven not guilty,” Katheria’s lawyer Devendra Singh said. The prosecution lawyer B M Kushwaha claimed that the case was “crystal clear” from day one .” We are surprised why it dragged on over so many years,” Kushwaha was quoted by the Indian Express as saying.
Katheria has earlier served as an MP from Agra twice before being elected from Etawah and has been a member of the Lok Sabha since 2009.
However, due to his conviction in this case, the MP is likely to lose his Lok Sabha membership under Article 102(1)(e) of the Constitution read with Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, LiveLaw reported.
According to the 1951 Act, a person would be disqualified from their membership of either House of the Parliament or the state legislative assembly or council if convicted and sentenced to imprisonment for two years or more and shall continue to be disqualified for a further period of six years after their release, the report said.
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