Cash-for-votes scam: Amar Singh to appear in court Tuesday
September 5th, 2011 - 10:10 pm ICT by IANS
New Delhi, Sep 5 (IANS) Rajya Sabha member and former Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh and three others are likely to appear before a trial court here Tuesday, after Delhi Police filed a chargesheet in the cash-for-votes scandal that rocked parliament during a trust vote in 2008.
Special Judge Sangita Dhingra Sehgal Aug 25 issued summons to Amar Singh, former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs Fagan Singh Kulaste and Mahavir Bhagora and Sudheendra Kulkarni, a former associate of BJP leader L.K. Advani.
“All the four accused are summoned to face trial on Sep 6 at 10 a.m.,” the judge said, accepting a Delhi Police plea.
Amar Singh’s former aide Sanjeev Saxena and middleman Suhail Hindustani, both in judicial custody, are also likely to attend the proceedings Tuesday.
The court would also hear Saxena’s bail plea Tuesday.
In the over 80-page chargesheet, police named Kulkarni as the “mastermind” of the scam.
“Kulkarni throughout remained in contact with other conspirators and played an active role and masterminded (it) and when actually the bribe money was paid to the BJP MPs, he remained present at the spot,” it claimed.
The chargesheet alleged that during investigation “sufficient evidence” came on record that on morning of July 22, 2008, Amar Singh “hatched a criminal conspiracy with his secretary Sanjeev Saxena to deliver cash of Rs.1 crore as illegal gratification”.
On July 22, 2008, three BJP MPs waved wads of currency notes in the Lok Sabha ahead of a trust vote, alleging they were given the money to vote in favour of the Manmohan Singh government.
Police secured permission from Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari before chargesheeting Amar Singh.
The case was registered in 2009 on the recommendation of a parliamentary panel which probed the scandal.
The trust vote was necessitated after the Left parties withdrew support to the government over the India-US civilian nuclear agreement.
There are 54 witnesses in the case, including CNN-IBN chief Rajdeep Sardesai, police said.
- Cash-for-votes scam: Amar Singh, three others summoned - Aug 25, 2011
- Cash-for-votes case: Amar Singh, five others chargesheeted - Aug 24, 2011
- Cash for votes: Amar Singh, two others arrested, jailed - Sep 06, 2011
- Kulkarni appears before court in cash-for-vote scam - Sep 27, 2011
- Cash-for-votes: Kulkarni, four others walk out of Tihar (Lead) - Nov 17, 2011
- Second arrest made in cash-for-votes case - Jul 20, 2011
- Cash-for-votes: BJP MP booked; bail pleas of three put off - Oct 03, 2011
- Amar Singh to be questioned on cash-for-votes - Jul 20, 2011
- Court pulls up cash-for-vote accused for wearing sunglasses - May 28, 2012
- Cash-for-votes: Court issues notice to Delhi Police (Lead) - Oct 31, 2011
- Cash-for-votes scam: Bail pleas of Kulkarni, two others, to be heard Oct 13 - Oct 07, 2011
- Cash-for-votes: BJP MP exempted from attending trial court (Second Lead) - Nov 01, 2011
- Amar Singh's interim bail plea hearing Friday - Sep 08, 2011
- Cash-for-vote: Cops furnish CD transcripts to accused - May 26, 2012
- Amar Singh seeks interim bail after initial no-show - Sep 06, 2011
Tags: bail plea, bharatiya janata party, bribe money, criminal conspiracy, currency notes, dhingra, hamid ansari, judicial custody, l k advani, left parties, Lok Sabha, mahavir, manmohan singh, nuclear agreement, parliamentary panel, rajya sabha member, Samajwadi Party, saxena, special judge, trust vote