Ex-SC staffer posted 'wrong' information on court website to see daughter working in BSES: Police
New Delhi, Jun 2: The desire to see his daughter working at the BSES prompted a former Supreme Court staffer to allegedly post wrong information related to a case involving Reliance Communications Chairman Anil Ambani on the apex court's website, a senior police official said.
Tapan Kumar Chakraborty and his associate Manav Sharma, who worked as court masters, had allegedly uploaded an order on the Supreme Court's website that said Ambani's presence in a case was dispensed with, despite the court ordering that he be present for the next hearing.
Chakraborty and Sharma were arrested in April. During interrogation, police found out that Chakraborty, who was nearing retirement, wanted to get his 23-year-old daughter placed in the BSES power discom, the official said.
He was due to retire next year and when someone assured him that his daughter would get a job in the BSES, Chakraborty agreed to tamper with the information, he added.
However, the official said the police were yet to get any clue about the person who made this offer to Chakraborty as it was done verbally. Sharma, who is in his 40s, had followed Chakraborty's instructions as the latter was senior to him.
The BSES is a joint venture of the Reliance Infrastructure Limited and the Delhi government.
The Crime Branch, which is probing the case, is trying to ascertain the identity of the person who directed Chakraborty to post the "wrong information", the official said.
A case of cheating and forgery was registered on March 1 after a complaint was received from the additional registrar of the Supreme Court.
The top court sacked Chakraborty and Sharma for tampering with its January 7 order on the issue of Ambani's personal appearance in connection with a contempt case against him. The two were arrested by the police and subsequently granted bail by a city court.
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Ensure paid holiday for postal staff on polling day in Kerala: John Brittas writes to Scindia
New Delhi (PTI): CPI(M) Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas on Sunday wrote to Union Minister of Communications Jyotiraditya Scindia, seeking his urgent intervention to ensure that postal employees in Kerala are granted a statutory paid holiday on April 9 for the Assembly elections in the southern state.
In his letter, Brittas expressed serious concern over the Kerala Postal Circle’s instructions to treat all postal employees as “absentee voters in essential services (AVES)”, directing them to opt for a postal ballot within an “extremely limited” timeframe.
The Department of Posts operates under the Ministry of Communications. Along with the Department of Telecommunications, it is one of the two main sections within the ministry headed by Scindia.
In his letter, Brittas pointed out that the circular dated March 19 required the collection of Form 12D by March 20 (Eid al-Fitr), and submission of the compiled details at the respective collectorates by March 22 (Sunday), both holidays in Kerala, making meaningful compliance difficult and raising apprehensions about the “arbitrary” nature of the directions.
The CPI(M) leader also pointed out that the Election Commission, in a communication dated March 16, reiterated the requirement under Section 135B of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, that every person employed in any establishment and entitled to vote shall be granted a paid holiday on the polling day, without any deduction or abatement of wages.
He said even where certain services are treated as essential, the long-standing administrative practice has been to maintain only minimal required operations on polling day, without denying employees the opportunity to vote in person.
Brittas argued that in some other states going to polls this month, including Assam, most postal employees have been granted a holiday on polling day, in accordance with the statutory provisions.
During the 2021 Kerala polls, postal establishments had observed a holiday on polling day, subject only to limited essential arrangements, he claimed.
The present deviation, Brittas said, raises concerns about inconsistency in the application of law and the avoidable curtailment of the democratic rights of employees.
Stating that the right to vote lies at the core of India's democratic framework, Brittas urged Scindia to examine the matter urgently.
“Given the proximity of the polling date, I earnestly seek your kind indulgence to have the matter examined on priority, and to issue urgent directions to the postal authorities in Kerala to ensure that the statutory entitlement of postal employees in Kerala to a paid holiday on the day of polling is duly ensured,” Brittas said in the letter.
The 140 seats in the Kerala Assembly will go to polls on April 9, and the results will be out on May 4.
