Order against Amar Singh, others reserved

Order against Amar Singh, others reserved

 

A Delhi court Additional Sessions Judge Raj Kapoor reserved its order on a plea challenging a magisterial court's verdict dismissing a criminal complaint against Rajya Sabha MP Amar Singh and two others. The court reserved it order after hearing arguments advanced by the counsel of complainant Hashmat Ali.  Singh was alleged of kidnapping a key witness of the 2008 cash-for-vote case.

During the hearing, the counsel appearing for Ali alleged that his client was kidnapped by Tarun and Ramesh from Khan Market here on September 25, 2008 when he was to depose before a parliamentary inquiry committee probing the cash-for-vote case. Amar Singh and his secretary Tarun appeared in the court while the third person Ramesh, who has also been named in the petition, was absent as the summons issued against him was not served. The petitioner claimed that after kidnapping Ali, Tarun and Ramesh had taken him to Singh's residence from where he was handed over to the police.
"The offence was not committed before any independent witnesses. Where was the question of examining any independent witnesses?" asked Ali's lawyer. Since the magistrate had dismissed his criminal complaint against Singh and two others saying there were no independent witnesses to corroborate the allegations. Observing his arguments, senior advocate N Hariharan and advocate S P M Tripathi, appearing for Singh and others, said that the magistrate's order was based not only on the testimony of Ali but also on the inquiry conducted under provisions of CrPC. The court, however, after hearing the arguments reserved its order for August 4.