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Journalism of Courage
NEW DELHI, May 30: A Delhi Court today indicted former deputy premier Devi Lal for taking with him alleged hawala dealer S K Jain to Norway in an official delegation in 1991, even as he was discharged in the main hawala case. Directing Devi Lal to pay up the entire cost of Jain’s air fare, hotel bills and other expenses on his visit to Norway for the funeral of its late king, special judge V B Gupta said inclusion of Jain in the official delegation was an act of “gross abuse of official position” by the former deputy prime minister.
The judge said, “By this act, Devi Lal had taken for granted the high office of deputy prime minister of India. He had squandered the tax payers’ money without just cause by including a private person in the official delegation.” Devi Lal, two of his brother’s grandsons — Pradeep and Amardeep Singh, alleged hawala dealer S K Jain and his employee J K Jain were, however, discharged from the main hawala case. Gupta said prima facie there was noother evidence than the two Jain diaries against the accused persons.
