Vaiko sentenced in sedition speech, can he contest RS polls now?

A Chennai court has sentenced MDMK leader Vaiko to a jail term of one year in connection with a 2009 sedition speech case. The court also slapped a fine of Rs 10,000 on him. A case was filed against Vaiko in 2009 by the Tamil Nadu Police under Sections 124-A (sedition) and 153 -A (promoting enmity between different groups) of the IPC. Vaiko had in his Raja Annamalai Mandram speech in October warned Delhi against its war against banned outfit Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Sri Lanka.

He had also praised LTTE chief Prabhakaran who was killed on May 19, 2009 in Sri Lanka’s Mullaitivu.