A Judicial Magistrate court here extended the judicial custody of Sukesh Balaji, the accused in a cheating case in which a city industrialist was alleged to have been duped of Rs.2.5 lakhs. Sukesh Balaji is now lodged in Tihar jail in connection with the alleged attempt to bribe the Election Commission officials for getting back the "two leaves" symbol to the Sasikala faction of the ruling AIADMK. Ousted deputy general secretary and the nephew of Sasikala, TTV Dinakaran, is also an accused in the symbol case.
The court extended Sukesh Balaji's judicial custody to November 26 and he was escorted back to Tihar Jail in Delhi.
Sukesh Balaji is accused of duping Rajavelu, a Coimbatore – based industrialist and collecting Rs. 2.5 lakhs from him. The accused had impersonated as an official in the rank of deputy secretary in Andhra Pradesh Government and contacted Rajavelu under the pretext of helping him to get a contract for kitchen and medical equipment. Rajavelu smelt a rat and preferred a complaint with the city police.