Shivangi Prakash-
The ongoing trial against ex-Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Associated Journal Limited (AJL), which publishes the newspaper National Herald, for alleged improper assignment of land in Panchkula to AJL was stayed last week by Punjab & Haryana High Court.
A single bench of Justice Arvind Singh Sangwan made the order, which stayed the continuing criminal cases against Hooda in a special CBI Court in Panchkula.
The Special Court had brought charges in April 2021, under Sections 120-B (party to criminal conspiracy) and 420 (cheating) of the IPC, as well as Section 13 (2) r/w Section 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The Central Bureau of Investigation claims that AJL was given a property in Panchkula by the Haryana Urban Development Authority (‘HUDA’) in 1982 based on ‘No Profit No Loss’. However, after ten years of no construction, HUDA seized back possession of the plot.
Furthermore, the petitioner – Bhupinder Singh Hooda (then CM of Haryana) allegedly recommended in 2005 that the same plot be restored to AJL at the original price, with interest owing up to the date of restoration of allotment.
It was argued that the trial court had not even looked at the documents that were part of the challan submitted by the CBI and relied on by the petitioners to prove their innocence and that the impugned order to frame charges against the petitioners was, therefore, based on judicial mind non-application.
It was also claimed that there was no reference to any document when crafting the allegation as to how the accused parties’ conspiracy was established.
It was submitted that the trial Court had formulated the conspiracy charge in the challenged judgement throughout 2005 to 2013, whereas the closure date of 2013 had no legal or reasonable basis in the report under Section 173 CrPC.
The High Court, issuing the notice to CBI, stayed the proceedings before the Trial Court. The matter has been listed again on August 11, 2021.
