Fresh setback to Himachal DGP Kundu in Nishant ‘harassment’ case as high court rejects plea to recall transfer order
- Protesting for nearly 100 days, unemployed visually impaired stop traffic outside Himachal CM Sukhu’s office in Shimla - January 30, 2024
- Ahead of Himachal budget session, BJP MLAs form strategy to hold Congress govt ‘accountable for deficiencies in governance’ - January 30, 2024
- Priyanka Gandhi or Anand Sharma? Whom will Congress send to Rajya Sabha from Himachal Pradesh; polls on Feb 27 - January 30, 2024
High court asks Sukhu government to set up SIT to probe controversy, seeks report by February 28
The Newz Radar
SHIMLA: The Himachal Pradesh High Court has rejected the applications of DGP Sanjay Kundu and Kangra SP Shalini Agnihotri for recalling its earlier order to remove them from their posts in connection with a controversy related to the allegations of harassment levelled by Palampur businessman Nishant Sharma.
Himachal police chief Kundu and Agnihotri had filed applications for withdrawal of the earlier order issued by the high court. The DGP had approached the Supreme Court, which had cancelled the transfer order and asked the state police chief to file an application in the high court for the recall of the order.
Following the latest order by the high court, the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu government will now have to remove both the officers from their posts. Not only this, the high court has also ordered to form a special investigation team (SIT) to probe the Nishant Sharma case. The SIT would not be headed by an officer below the Inspector General level, the high court said. The SIT will have to present its investigation report in the high court by February 28.
On Thursday, as per the orders of the Supreme Court, DGP Kundu and the Kangra SP had filed a recall application in the high court. In their application, both of them had asked the high court to stay its December 26 order calling for their removal from the posts. The next day, the high court heard arguments given by both the officers and reserved its decision, which was pronounced on Tuesday (January 9, 2024) by the bench of Chief Justice MS Ramachandra Rao and Justice Jyotsna Rewal Dua.
SIT to probe instead of CBI
Although it was said in the Supreme Court on behalf of the DGP’s lawyer that the court could hand over the investigation of the case to the CBI, something to which Nishant Sharma also agreed, the high court ordered to constitute a SIT. Nishant Sharma’s lawyer argued in the court that this case is not of “rarest type” and the Supreme Court’s order for CBI probe applied on to “rarest of rare” cases. It was said on behalf of the lawyer that in fact this case had been “mishandled”. To this, the court ordered that a SIT should be formed to investigate the case, which would not be headed by an officer below the IG level. The court also directed that Nishant Sharma should continue to get police security.
