Sanjay Raut aide’s plea to quash FIR: HC seeks police reply

Patkar moved the HC recently, seeking quashing of an FIR against him at the Azad Maidan police station that was later transferred to the Economic Offences Wing ( EOW) of the Mumbai Police. The HC will hear the plea next month.

Patkar also filed a writ plea challenging an FIR against him in Pune for an alleged fraud in obtaining contract for the Jumbo Covid centre in Pune’s Shivaji Nagar. As per a complaint by BJP leader Kirit Somaiya, Patkar had no prior expertise in the field and was given contract by flouting the norms. The HC is likely to hear Patkar’s pleas challenging the FIRs in Mumbai and Pune together next month.

A division bench of Justice Nitin W Sambre and Justice Rajesh N Laddha was hearing Patkar’s plea challenging Mumbai Police FIR.

Patkar claimed political vendetta in complaints by Somaiya and argued that “no useful purpose would be served by permitting the frivolous and vexatious prosecution to continue to be in vogue”.

He said that there is similarity in the FIRs filed at Pune and Mumbai and “there cannot be two FIRs registered on identical set of facts… the same could be investigated in the first FIR and then every time there is no requirement in law to register multiple FIRs”.

Advocate Subhash Jha for Patkar said that as per the Disaster Management Act, there is an embargo imposed on any prosecution for filing a complaint, therefore, police could not register the same. Jha said the chargesheet filed before magistrate did not figure Patkar’s name as an accused.

“There is a grave danger which the petitioner perceives of his being entangled in the FIR in the near future… therefore under these compelling circumstances when the FIR itself is malafide and reflects colourable exercise of the powers vested with the police, he has been rather constrained to approach High Court,” the plea noted. He also stated that an internal investigation by BMC did not find any wrongdoing by the petitioner’s firm and EOW did not find any evidence against other partners.

The petitioner said that the impugned FIR was registered with Azad Maidan Police station on August 24, 2022, while the chargesheet was filed in April, 2023.

The plea added that although Patkar was available to cooperate with the probing agency throughout and participated in the investigation, no material was found against him.

Therefore, the police cannot cannot keep the petitioner in a situation in which he would be all the time apprehensive of a sword hanging over his head and the same is violative of his fundamental right under Article 21 of the Constitution, Jha argued.

The plea also stated that Patkar is suffering from “health complications” such as depression, anxiety, panic attacks, negative thoughts and hallucinations as he is fighting a legal battle in a personal matter and his medical condition has aggravated.

The plea sought quashing of FIR and pending hearing, sought stay on implementation of the same and proceedings arising out of it. Patkar also sought direction to Mumbai Police not to take coercive action against Patkar till his plea is decided.