Virbhadra graft case: Verdict on CBI probe Friday

Indo-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE

SHIMLA - The Himachal Pradesh High Court will Friday give its decision on union Steel Minister Virbhadra Singhs plea to transfer to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) a corruption case filed against him by the state police.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Kurian Joseph and Justice Deepak Gupta Monday reserved its order on his petition.

In the last hearing, state counsel Satyapal Jain argued that the decision to transfer the case from the state police to the CBI should be taken only in the rarest for rare cases.

There is no solid basis for the transfer of the case to the CBI at this point in time when the government has completed its investigation and is ready to file the chargesheet in the trial court, he said.

Virbhadra Singhs counsel R.S. Cheema argued that the case was registered on the basis of an audio CD whose origin, source and authenticity were not known.

Since Virbhadra Singh is a public figure and to restore the confidence of the public, the case should be referred to the CBI, Cheema said.

In the petition, Virbhadra Singh said that after Dhumal became chief minister in December 2007, the government registered a case against him and his wife Aug 3, 2008 under the Prevention of Corruption Act on the basis of an audio CD released by his political adversary Vijai Singh Mankotia in 2007.

According to police, Virbhadra Singh was heard allegedly referring to some monetary transactions on the phone with Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Mahinder Lal, who is now dead. The CD also contained the voices of his wife and some