Karnataka reduces escort charges on Maudany from Rs 15 lakh to 1.18 lakh

The Karnataka government on Friday told the Supreme Court that it has reduced escort charges on Kerala's People Democratic Party leader Abdul Nazeer Maudany from Rs 14.79 lakh to 1.18 lakh.

After getting reproach from the top court a day before, the state government through its counsel Joseph Aristotle submitted before a bench of Justices S A Bobde and L Nageswara Rao it has revised the charges to be levied on Maudany for his trip to Kerala.

Taking his submission into the record, the court also allowed Maudany's plea to re-schedule his visit. He would now remain in Kerala between August 6 to 19.

The court had on Thursday pulled up the Karnataka government for raising a bill with exorbitant charges for police escort, making it almost impossible for Maudany to visit his home state for attending son's marriage.

51-year-old Maudany was granted permission by the apex court on July 31 to attend various functions to be held in Thallasery, Ernakulum and Kollam and visit his ailing mother too between August 2 and 14.

Maudany, facing trial in the 2008 Bengaluru serial blasts case, challenged the city court's order of July 24, declining him permission to attend son's marriage functions. Though the trial court allowed him to visit his ailing mother between August 1 and 7, it refused the permission to attend the marriage function scheduled on August 9.

As Maudany was earlier granted conditional bail by the apex court, he preferred to approach the top court only against the trial court's order.