In a major relief to Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh in the controversial audio-CD case, the Himachal Pradesh High Court on Wednesday dismissed an appeal against his acquittal by a Special Judge (Anti-Corruption) in 2012-a day before he was sworn in as Chief Minister on December 25. The appeal was filed by a retired IAS officer S M Katwal, who claimed that since the state government and its home department did not file any appeal against the trial court order, he, being an aggrieved person, had a right to challenge the acquittal of Virbhadra Singh. However, Justice Dharam Chand Chaudhary said the petitioner, who had served as chairman of HP Subordinate Services Selection Board (SSSB), had no locus standi to file the appeal as he was not a victim within the meaning of Section 2(a) of the Code of Criminal Procedure. “He (Katwal ) is not competent to file the appeal against the judgment of acquittal dated December 24, 2012 passed by the special judge who handled trials of cases under Prevention of Corruption Act,” it said. The judge also observed that the petition even does not disclose sufficient cause to seek condonation of 96 days’ delay, as occurred in filing the appeal.
