HC orders SIT probe into Fauji case

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 12

More than a year after Haryana Lokayukta’s recommendation on registration of a case against former Chief Parliamentary Secretary Ram Kishan Fauji was quashed by a single judge, a division Bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court today ordered setting up of a special investigating team.

The Bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice AB Chaudhari made it clear that the SIT, to be constituted by the State Director-General of Police, will comprise IPS officers of the Haryana cadre but not belonging to the state.

The Bench also made absolute the stay on the operation of orders passed by a Single Judge on February 27, 2015. It also dismissed an application filed for vacation of stay and admitted the appeal filed by the Haryana Government through its counsel Palika Monga.

In its appeal, the state government argued the Single Judge Bench erred in law by not hearing the contents of CD. Mere hearing would have shown that money was demanded for the change of land use.

It was also submitted that the Central Forensic Laboratory gave positive finding of no tampering after frame-by-frame examination of the video contents and the auditory. The CD had allegedly shown demand of Rs 5 crore for the change of land use for a plot along NH-8 in Gurgaon.

Facing allegations of corruption, Fauji had initially moved the High Court against the Haryana Lokayukta’s order to register a case against him. The matter was referred to the Lokayukta for probe by the state government, allegedly under pressure of the Opposition then. Soon after the directives, the state chief secretary had sent a reference to the Lokayukta for reconsideration of the matter on the ground that his observations were “at variance” with the findings. But on February 11 last year, the Lokayukta dismissed the state’s application.

The Single Judge, in his order, had asserted: “The counsel for the state would submit that investigation has proceeded subsequent to the impugned order passed. A FIR has been registered on December 4, 2014, that is, after the writ petition was filed, when the issue of the authenticity of the CD was very much open for consideration.

“Indeed, I had stayed further proceedings when I passed an order on December 19, 2014, directing the CD to be sent along with the memory chip to CFSL, Hyderabad. If the investigation is purported to be taken by lodging FIR, consequent on the directions given by the order which is now quashed, it shall also be quashed”.