PF scam: SC notice to district judge

The Supreme Court on Wednesday sought an explanation from Ghaziabad District Judge Vishnu Chandra Gupta on the allegation that he had interfered in the trial in the Uttar Pradesh provident fund scam case....

The Supreme Court on Wednesday sought an explanation from Ghaziabad District Judge Vishnu Chandra Gupta on the allegation that he had interfered in the trial in the Uttar Pradesh provident fund scam case,which involves the names of several members of the judiciary,including a former Supreme Court judge.

A Special three-judge Bench led by Justice D K Jain issued notice to Gupta to explain his conduct on July 26,2010 when he allegedly tried to put a spoke in the CBI wheel by orally advising the local UP police to join the probe. The incident was put down in detail in an affidavit filed by the CBI before the apex court on Wednesday.

The affidavit alleged that Gupta had on July 26 asked the district government counsel (DGC) of the local police to take back the CDs relating to the scam from the agency. When the CBI counsel protested,the judge orally told the DGC to argue the matter as they had filed the main chargesheet in the case and could participate in the conduct of the trial along with the CBI,the affidavit said.

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The Bench took serious note of Guptas alleged misdemeanor to interfere in a probe which the Supreme Court itself is monitoring after transferring it into the CBIs hands. We are seized of the matter. It is the direct interference in the course of justice as it is monitored by us, said the Bench,also comprising Justices V S Sirpurkar and G S Singhvi. Gupta has been given four weeks time to file his reply.

Advocate Ashok Srivastava,appearing for Gupta,said the allegations were incorrect. However,the court said Gupta will have to respond to the allegations through an affidavit.

The court also issued notices to the 70 accused charge-

sheeted,including six former Ghaziabad district judges,in the case on a CBI plea for transferring the trial to a competent court outside Uttar Pradesh,preferably in Delhi.

The Bench,however,declined at this stage to make public the confidential status report filed by the CBI in a sealed cover on July 28 in the Rs 20 crore scam.

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The CBI,which read out a part of the report submitted in the sealed cover,said there was no evidence against 17 judges and there was lack of sufficient evidence to prosecute the remaining 24 judicial officers in the case. The agency reportedly says in its status report that former SC judge,Justice Tarun Chatterjee,is among the 24 judicial officers against whom there is no prosecutable evidence.

The CBI chargesheet has clearly implicated six retired district judges,of which three Ravindra Kumar Mishra,Ajay Kumar Singh and Radhey Shyam Chaubey were elevated to the Allahabad High Court. The other three judges were Ram Prasad Mishra,R P Yadav and Arun Kumar.

The CBI submitted that trial of the case should be shifted out as the there are 25 class III and IV employees of the Ghaziabad District Court who are crucial witnesses and are likely to be influenced.