'Stay your hand': SC to Maha govt in Param Bir Singh case
Darpan News Desk IANS, 22 Feb, 2022 01:51 PM
New Delhi, Feb 22 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Maharashtra government to "completely stay its hand" against former Mumbai top cop Param Bir Singh, while it decides whether criminal cases registered against him could be handed over to the CBI.
A bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and M.M. Sundresh expressed concern over the ongoing legal battle between Singh and the Maharashtra government, terming it a "messy state of affairs" and also a "very unfortunate situation".
"We have had occasion to say earlier that it is a messy state of affairs. Very unfortunate situation... having the propensity of shaking the confidence of people in the police system and the elected system. Process of law must carry on..."
Former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, who was accused by Singh of corruption, is already under arrest for offences, including money laundering.
The top court also stayed all proceedings against Singh, probe and filing of charge sheet, and listed the case for final disposal on March 9 on the question of transfer of investigation of cases against Singh to the CBI.
The bench also asked the Maharashtra government to completely keep its hands off with regards to the ongoing investigation till the top court decides Singh's plea to transfer all cases against him to the CBI.
Justice Kaul told senior advocate Darius Khambata, representing the Maharashtra government: "Meanwhile, you please completely stay your hand. We do not know if the investigation has to be transferred to the CBI...".
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the CBI, said all the FIRs must come to the central investigating agency. He added that there would be a possibility that statements may point to a particular direction or colour the case, making things difficult for the investigating agency.
The bench remarked that if it were to be inclined to pass an order of transferring the cases to the CBI, investigation being completed would cause problems. Khambata assured the bench that, in all senses, the matter will be on hold, and the court took it on record.
The bench noted: "We have now put down matter for final hearing and if we were to be inclined to pass an order as per what the CBI and petitioner says, investigation being completed would cause problems."
Senior advocate Puneet Bali, representing Singh, complained against the Maharashtra government, saying that it has filed challans in one of the FIRs. "They have presented challan in one of the FIRs. This is absolutely going out of hand," he said.
After hearing arguments, the bench said it will take a call as to whether the investigation is to be transferred to the CBI or not. Singh has claimed to be a whistle-blower in exposing the alleged wrongdoings of the former Home Minister. In November last year, the top court had granted him protection from arrest in the cases and directed him to cooperate in the investigations.
The bench was hearing a plea by Singh against the Bombay High Court judgment passed in September last year, dismissing his plea challenging the two inquiries ordered by the Home Ministry for allegedly violating service rules and corruption charges, as non-maintainable.
Amid a surge in Coronavirus cases, the Delhi government on Tuesday decided to impose a weekend curfew from January 8. During weekdays, the metros and buses will run at full seating capacity with strict adherence to Covid-19 guidelines.
The centuries-old Ravidas temple in Tughlakabad was demolished by the DDA on August 10 in 2019 following a Supreme Court order. Since then, a series of protests have been organised by Dalit organisations.
Veteran social worker Sindhutai Sapkal - known as the 'Mother to thousands of orphans' - passed away following a cardiac arrest, a family friend said. She was 73, and breathed her last at Galaxy Hospital where she was under treatment for almost a month.
A man was beaten to death for allegedly disrespecting 'Nishan Sahib' (the Sikh religious flag) at a gurdwara in village Nizampur in Kapurthala district on Sunday. Residents of the village claimed that the man disrespected the Nishan Sahib and tried to run away from the spot.
Talking to the media here after paying obeisance at Sri Darbar Sahib, Channi, who accompanied by Deputy CM Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, described it as the most heinous act, which has not only hurt religious sentiments but also tormented all, and should be condemned with the harshest possible words by one and all.
"When the officials examined a consignment declared as plastic hot fix with a value of Rs 5,000, they got suspicious. The said consignment was then opened. On examination, a packet containing pouches of cut and polished diamonds was found inside it. These diamonds were concealed very ingeniously in the packets of 'plastic hot fix'," said an official.
