145;Weak146; case helps another get away

The acquittal of dismissed sessions judge J.W. Singh, accused of underworld links, has again focussed attention on the state8217;s inept ha...

The acquittal of dismissed sessions judge J.W. Singh, accused of underworld links, has again focussed attention on the state8217;s inept handling of high profile judicial cases.

From the case of alleged Al Qaeda activist Mohamed Afroz to the poor progress in the multi-crore cooperative bank scam, judicial failures have characterised the Democratic Front government, particularly the Home Department, led by Deputy CM Chhagan Bhujbal.

When Afroz was detained under POTO, Bhujbal had taken credit for the arrest and dispatched two high-level police teams to the US and the UK for further investigation. The visits cost the state exchequer Rs 40 lakh and the teams submitted their reports to Bhujbal.

Then, on March 26, POTO charges against Afroz were dropped on the grounds it was a mistake to book him under the legislation. Stunned by the police8217;s casual approach, Bhujbal asked Additional Chief Secretary Home Asoke Basak to probe the decision.

Last week, Bhujbal received Basak8217;s report. But he is yet to fix responsibility. 8216;8216;I have received the report but I have not read it,8217;8217; Bhujbal said.

The police approach in the cooperative bank scam and the J.W. Singh case too looks similar. The Chief Minister had on July 31 said the police would file a chargesheet against Sunil Kedar, main bank scam accused, within the stipulated 90 days. This, however, was not done. So, Kedar was released on bail on August 1.

On the J.W. Singh case, Bhujbal had no comments on the outcome. He simply said Singh was released on technical grounds.

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While the complete text of the court order is unavailable, it appears from the operative part that a reason for Singh8217;s release was police failure to get permission from the competent authority before tapping his telephone. Why did investigating officials not get permission as prescribed under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act MCOCA?

A former DGP said police credibility was eroded owing to their inept handling of sensitive cases. 8216;8216;I feel the government should fix responsibility for the mess,8217;8217; he said. Special Counsel Ujwal Nikam, who appeared for the state in the Afroz and J.W. Singh cases, refused to comment.