New Delhi: A day after filing a petition seeking bail in the Sankararaman murder case, the Shankaracharya of Kancheepuram today (Dec 16, 2004) moved the Supreme Court challenging a Chennai Court order refusing him bail in the "Radhakrishnan Assault case" of 2002.

Both the petitions are likely to be taken up for hearing tomorrow (Dec 17, 2004) before a Bench headed by Chief Justice R C Lahoti.

Without approaching the High Court, the Seer straight away moved the Supreme Court filing a Special Leave Petition challenging the December 10 order of the Sessions Court in the assault case, in which he was formally arrested on November 23. He was arrested in Sankararaman murder case on November 11.

Advocating grounds for grant of bails, which were somewhat similar to the grounds taken by him in the Sankararaman murder case bail petition, the Shankaracharya said there had been consorted effort by the Tamil Nadu police to malign him by implicating him in various cases in which he was not even remotely concerned.

Dismissing the bail application, the Principal Sessions Judge P Murugesan on December 10 had held that after studying statements of witnesses and confessions by some accused it had reason to believe there was a prima facie case against Shankaracharya.