Court Update — Delhi

Senior bank official charge-sheeted for graft
n THE Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has chargesheeted Punjab and Sindh Bank official G.S. Maid for allegedly demanding (Rs 84,000) and accepting a bribe of Rs 15,000 from a director of Cold Form Engineering (Pvt) Ltd, Ghaziabad, Alok Gupta.

According to the chargesheet filed in a special court in the Capital, the then Chawri Bazar Branch manager of the bank had demanded the bribe in lieu of the enhanced credit facilities in favour of his company.

Gupta had reportedly approached Maid in June 1992 to pursue the pending matter. Maid allegedly demanded a bribe of 5 per cent of the proposed credit facilities. He later reduced his alleged demand to three per cent, which worked out to Rs 84,000. According to the chargesheet, Maid demanded the payment by July 15 at his residence in Sidhartha Extension. He later allegedly agreed to accept rs 15,000 as the first instalment.

The Anti-Corruption branch of the CBI laid a trap and treated the currency notes with phenolphthalein powder and instructed Gupta to pass the amount to Maid. Th accused was caught red-handed.

Court allows extradition of arrested Dane to US
Metropolitan Magistrate (MM) Dharmesh Sharma on Friday ordered the extradition of a Danish national to the United States in a drug-trafficking case for which he was convicted seven years ago.

Flemming Ludin Larsen was arrested last year from the transit lounge of the Indira Gandhi International Airport while he was waiting for a flight to Kathmandu.

The MM said: “There is a prima facie case made in support of the requisition of the United States for extradition of the fugitive criminal to their country.” The Dane was arrested following a request made to the Indian Government by the United States authorities.

Larsen had been convicted by a Sessions Judge in Florida for cocaine-trafficking in December 1991.

He had been arrested in Florida along with another accused on September 9, 1991 and had reportedly pleaded guilty to the accusations. However, the sentencing into the case was deferred pending his co-operation with law enforcement agencies. But Larsen disappeared following which the same court issued a “no-bond warrant” on September 10, 1992, for his arrest.

Lok Adalat to take up 400 road accidents
Around 400 road accident cases will be taken up for settlement during the 130th Lok Adalat at the Patiala House courts on Sunday. The Lok Adalat is being jointly organised by the Inner Wheel Club (IWC) and the Delhi Legal Services Authority (DLSA). The president of the IWC (Delhi main), Kaushalya Tandon, said that during the day-long session, ten separate courts, each headed by an eminent judge, would take up the accident cases.

The Lok Adalat would be inaugurated by acting Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court Justice Y K Sabharwal and presided over by Justices Arun Kumar, who is also the DLSA executive chairman, and Dalveer Bhandari of the Delhi High Court. Senior IWC officials will also be present on the occasion.

This is the 3rd Lok Adalat being organised by the IWC in association with the DLSA. During the adalat organised by the club in 1995, most of the house-rent cases taken up were settled successfully.