Saurabh Malik
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, September 7
More than four years have passed since the services of Additional District and Sessions Judge Hemant Gopal were placed under suspension, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has not passed a final order in the matter despite his indictment.
Staying the operation of judgment dated April 20, 2013, convicting former MLA Mangat Rai in a cheating case, Justice Arvind Singh Sangwan asserted: “Though no final order has been passed by the High Court qua Hemant Gopal, Additional District and Sessions Judge, who is continuing under suspension for the last about four years, prima facie, his indictment as per the inquiry report is apparent on record.”
Rai, through counsel Vishal Garg Narwana, had moved the High Court, seeking a stay on conviction on the grounds that Gopal, on a complaint against him, was “found guilty of the article of charges that he had demanded illegal gratification while passing the impugned judgment of conviction and had acquitted one of the co-accused”.
Mangat, along with other accused rice millers, had faced trial for alleged violation of the “agreement billing” executed with the Bathinda FCI District Manager. The trial Court, in all, convicted 22 accused.
Justice Sangwan’s Bench was told that the appellant was not convicted under the Prevention of Corruption Act in the present case, but only under Sections 420 and 120-B of the IPC and was sentenced to seven years rigorous imprisonment and slapped a fine of Rs 20,000.
Narwana added the applicant/appellant was elected MLA in 2007. In case the judgment of conviction and order of sentence was not stayed, it would affect his political career as he was denied the party ticket in 2017 but wanted to contest the Punjab Assembly election in February 2022.
After hearing counsel for the parties and going through the facts, Justice Sangwan observed that it was clear that the Additional Sessions Judge/Special Judge, CBI, Patiala, on a complaint given by the applicant-appellant faced departmental inquiry. As per the report, he was found guilty of the charge. A law officer in the department of Legal and Legislative Affairs Sushil Kumar, who acted as a mediator, also stood dismissed from service.
Allowing the application, Justice Sangwan added that the impugned judgment of conviction and order of sentence would remain stayed during the pendency of the appeal and would not affect the civil rights of the applicant/appellant, who intended to contest the Punjab Assembly in February 2022.
4 years after additional district and sessions judge was suspended, HC yet to pass final order
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