HSWC scam: Court issues notice to Haryana over quashing of FIR plea

Another Haryana IAS officer Sanjeev Verma, Managing Director of the Haryana State Warehousing Corporation (HSWC), is also an accused in this case along with Ravinder.

Panchkula Police had booked Verma, Kumar and others on charges of criminal conspiracy and fabrication of official documents on the complaint lodged by Khemka.

Incidentally, the FIR against Verma and Kumar (FIR No. 171 at Sector 5 police station, Panchkula) was registered just about an hour after Panchkula Police booked Khemka and three retired employees of HSWC under provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act (FIR No. 170).

Verma, the incumbent MD of HSWC, had made a complaint filed by Kumar the basis to seek an FIR against Khemka, a 1991-batch IAS officer.

As the matter came up for hearing on Wednesday, the counsel for Kumar, Senior Advocate Rajesh Garg with Neha Matharoo, contended that the impugned FIR was a complete abuse of the process of law, and it was lodged with malicious intent.

Referring to Section 195 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, Kumar contended it was only on the complaint of a public servant (the investigating officer of the earlier FIR) that proceedings under Sections l67, I82, I95A, 198, 211 and 218 could be initiated. It could be done only after the completion of investigation and arriving at the conclusion that the complaint (earlier FIR) was false and was made deliberately by the complainant (Khemka).

The bench of Justice Sureshwar Thakur, after hearing the matter, issued notice to the state of Haryana. The HC permitted the state counsel to file reply and status report within three weeks.

Justice Thakur ordered, “The investigation into the FIR may continue, but the investigating officer concerned, may not, except with the leave of this court, institute a report under Section 173 of the CrPC before the learned Magistrate concerned.”