Arrives in ambulance with oxygen mask strapped to his face

Chennai: P Rajagopal, owner of the Saravana Bhavan chain of restaurants, surrendered at the Madras High Court yesterday to start his life sentence for the 2001 kidnapping and murder of an employee. 72-year-old Rajagopal, arrived in an ambulance with an oxygen mask strapped to his face after the Supreme Court turned down a plea to delay his sentence on medical grounds.

In response to the plea that was filed on Monday, a Bench headed by Justice N.V. Ramana asked, “If he was so ill, why did he not indicate illness even for one day during hearings of his appeal?”  

In 2004, P. Rajagopal was convicted in the kidnapping and murder of an employee, Santhakumar. A local Court had sentenced Rajagopal and eight others involved in the murder to 10 years in prison. 

Five years later, the Madras High Court upheld the verdict and increased the sentence to life in prison, a punishment then upheld by the Supreme Court in March this year.