Ex-MLA Graft Case: Ex-junior assistant held guilty, another accused acquitted

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 19

Eleven years after a corruption case registered by the CBI rocked the then Akali-BJP government, Jagjit Singh, Special Judge, CBI court, held an accused, Devinder Singh Thapar, guilty on Monday. The court acquitted another accused, Bhag Singh, in the case.

Devinder Singh Thapar, former junior assistant in the office of the Registrar of Firms and Societies, Punjab, was caught by the CBI along with Raj Khurana, former Punjab’s Chief Parliamentary Secretary (CPC) and BJP MLA from Rajpura, in Sector 39, Chandigarh, on May 5, 2011, while allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 1.50 crore.

The CBI laid a trap on a complaint of Manpreet Singh, general secretary of the Punjab Automobile Mechanics Association.

Manpreet alleged that Thapar demanded a bribe to close a complaint filed against association’s office-bearers for alleged embezzlement of fund.

Thapar had told Manpreet that he would get this work done through Raj Khurana, who would approach Manoranjan Kalia, the then Industry Minister.

The accused also threatened that in case of non-payment of the bribe amount, control of the association would be taken over by the government and a criminal case would be registered against its office-bearers.

An amount of Rs 2 crore was initially demanded, which was finally settled at Rs 1.5 crore. On his complaint, the CBI laid a trap. Devinder asked the complainant to reach the official residence of Khurana.

Thapar and late Khurana were arrested while they were accepting Rs 1.5 crore - Rs 15 lakh in cash and Rs 1.35 crore through nine cheques - at the official residence of Khurana.

The CBI claimed in the chargesheet that Bhag Singh, PS to Swarna Ram, the then Minister of Technical Education, Social Security and Woman and Child Welfare, was also involved in the case.

As per the CBI, in pursuance of the conspiracy, Bhag Singh got a note signed from Swarna Ram that referred the complaint to Kalia for action. Bhag Singh made available a copy of the note to Thapar to help him be in a position to ask for the bribe, it is alleged. Accused Bhag Singh was arrested after Swarna Ram told the CBI that he had sent the note recommending that the land deal case be forwarded to the then Local Bodies and Industries Minister, but he failed to do so.

AS Sukhjia, counsel for Bhag Singh, argued that the accused was falsely implicated in the case by the CBI.

The CBI later ruled out the involvement of other ministers, except the accused persons. The court framed charges against all three accused for offences punishable under Section 120-B read with Section 8 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1998. Khurana died during the trial in 2017.

PK Dogra, special public prosecutor, argued the case on behalf of the CBI. Dogra argued that the CBI had proved the case beyond the shadow of doubt.

Dogra said the voice samples of the complainant and Thapar matched with their originals voices in phone calls recorded as part of the trap. The court will pronounce the quantum of the sentence on September 22, 2022.

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