Kochi: In a relief to Union Minister Suresh Gopi, the High Court has exempted him from appearing in the trial court in a case of tax evasion by forging a vehicle registration document in the Union Territory of Puducherry. Justice C Jayachandran's interim order came in the petition filed by Suresh Gopi. The petition is related to the case of allegedly registering a luxury car on January 28, 2010 based on a forged affidavit prepared by a notary.
Earlier the Ernakulam Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate had dismissed the plea filed by the actor-politician demanding that the case be cancelled and he be discharged. The petition explains that he had rented a house in Puducherry since 2009 and there is agricultural land managed by his relatives. The case is that the state had suffered a loss of Rs 3.
60 lakh as the car was not registered in Kerala. It is argued that it is illegal not to pay tax here as his permanent address is in Kerala..
