Petitions filed by former Uttar Pradesh minister Babu Singh Kushwaha dismissed by the Allahabad High Court, senior IAS officer Pradeep Shukla and two other accused in the multi-crore NRHM scam.
They had challenged the chargesheet filed against them by the CBI in connection with the case. Justice Sunil Hali dismissed the petitions observing “it cannot be said that the material facts disclosed in the chargesheet do not disclose commission of cognizable offence” and “I do not find any reason to interfere at this stage to quash the proceedings pending against the accused applicants”.
Besides Kushwaha, who was a cabinet minister in the previous Mayawati government in the state and Shukla who was the then Principal Secretary (Medical and Health), those who had moved the court were former Managing Director of Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited Devendar Mohan (now retired) and the then GM of the power corporation Ravindra Rai.
The court also underscored the need for disposing of the case “expeditiously” by “putting it on fast track” and issued a direction to the Chief Secretary “for considering the constitution of special courts” to decide matters “where large scale misappropriation of government funds is alleged”.
“Decision in this regard be taken by the government after examining a number of cases which are pending before the CBI court at Ghaziabad. Let this decision be taken within a period of three months from the date a certified copy of this order is received,” the court mentioned.
