There is conspiracy to make CJI resign: Lawyer to SC
New Delhi, Apr 22: A lawyer made a sensational claim in the Supreme Court on Monday that there was a conspiracy a foot to make CJI Ranjan Gogoi resign by "framing him" in a false case of sexual harassment.
Lawyer Utsav Singh Bains, in his affidavit filed in the case taken up by the apex court on Saturday as the matter of "great public importance touching upon the independence of judiciary", has also claimed that he was offered Rs 1.5 crore by one Ajay to represent a former apex court woman employee and arrange a pressure against the CJI at the Press Club of India here.
"The Deponent wishes to bring to notice of the court a serious matter of a conspiracy to make the Chief Justice of India resign by framing him in a false case of sexual harassment," the lawyer said.
Bains said he was shocked to hear the allegations and was willing to represent the complainant.
"But when the said Ajay further narrated the entire sequence of events and facts of the case, the Deponent was not convinced and found several loopholes in the said Ajay's version of events," the affidavit said.
The lawyer then sought an interaction with the complainant to verify the claims, it said, adding that the meeting was denied which gave rise to the suspicion.
"That, when the Deponent outright refused the said bribe of Rs 50 lakh offered by the said Ajay to frame the CJI, the said Ajay then increased the sum to Rs 1.5 crore to the Deponent following which the Deponent asked him to immediately leave his office," the affidavit said.
"The Deponent was informed by reliable sources that certain Fixers', who claim to be engaged in illegally managing Judgements in exchange for cash are behind this plot as the CJI has taken decisive action to crack down on such fixers," the affidavit claimed.
The lawyer, who has been appearing in cases including for the victims and their kin in sexual harassment cases against jailed self-styled Godman Asaram and the witness protection matter, has also named some alleged "fixers" in his affidavit.
However, he has not revealed his source of information.
"The Deponent will not share any names of the sources mentioned herein under any circumstances as these were Privileged Communications under the Advocates Act," the affidavit said.
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Surat LS candidate Nilesh Kumbhani whose nomination form was rejected suspended from Congress
Ahmedabad, Apr 25: The Gujarat Congress on Friday suspended from the party for six years its Surat Lok Sabha candidate Nilesh Kumbhani, whose nomination form was rejected over discrepancies leading to the BJP's Mukesh Dalal getting elected unopposed.
A statement from the Congress said the party's disciplinary committee decided to suspend Kumbhani after thorough discussion, adding it had come to the conclusion that the nomination form was rejected due to gross negligence on his part or "in connivance with the BJP".
"To be fair to you we have given time to you to explain your case but instead of coming before the party disciplinary committee you have gone incommunicado. After your form was rejected by the authorities, BJP went ahead and got form of other eight candidates withdrawn. This has deprived people of Surat their voting rights," the Congress disciplinary committee headed by Balu Patel said.
"People of Surat and party workers have become very angry due to your action and are expressing their anger in different ways. The Congress party has decided to suspend you for six years from the party," the press note said.
Kumbhani's nomination form was rejected on April 21 after his three proposers submitted affidavits to the district returning officer claiming the signatures on the document was not theirs.
The nomination form of Suresh Padsala, the Congress' substitute candidate from Surat, was also invalidated on the same grounds.
In his order, Returning Officer Sourabh Pardhi said the three nomination forms submitted by Kumbhani and Padsala were rejected after prima facie discrepancy was found in the signatures of the proposers and they did not appear to be genuine.
Kumbhani, a former corporator from Surat, had unsuccessfully fought the 2022 Assembly polls from Kamrej there.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's Mukesh Dalal was elected unopposed from Surat Lok Sabha constituency on April 22 after all other nominees, including one from BSP, withdrew from the fray one by one on the last day of withdrawing papers.
