'Can't buy justice with money', SC tells wealthy convict, dismisses Appeal

On Wednesday, while dismissing Vismay Amitbhai Shah's (a wealthy person) appeal against his conviction and five-year sentence for causing death of two students while rashly driving his BMW car in Ahmedabad in February 2013, the Supreme Court has made it clear that justice is not for sale.

It stated striclty:

"You cannot buy justice with money."

The case is a stark reminder of the rich displaying money power to silence victims' families, as was the modus operandi adopted in the hit-and-run cases involving Sanjeev Nanda and Alister Anthony Pereira, Shah's Lawyers attempted to persuade a Bench comprising of Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justice M R Shah that the families of the two victims were paid ₹1.50 crore and they had settled their grievance against Shah.

This brazen display of money power did not go down well with the Judges and they made it clear that, "You cannot buy justice with money."

After making the statement, the Court then went on to dismiss Shah's Special Leave Petition challenging Gujarat High Court's February 17 decision, which had upheld an Ahmedabad Trial Court's Jury 13, 2015, judgment.

The Trial Court had held Shah guilty of rash and negligent driving that caused the death of two students who were travelling in an autorickshaw. Both students were sole children of their parents.

The HC's Justice Sonia Gokani had rejected Shah's appeal against the trial court order despite Shah's Lawyers producing settlement deeds with the parents of the deceased.

The High Court in its judgement delivered had asked Shah to surrender within six weeks to serve the remainder of the five-year sentence awarded by the trial court. 

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