PTI

Observing that Sikkim High Court chief justice PD Dinakaran’s petition for stay against his impeachment is motivated the Supreme Court on Tuesday gave nod for the procedure. The apex court said Dinakaran’s plea is only to delay the impeachment procedures. Sikkim high court chief justice PD Dinakaran had filed petition in the apex court challenging the impeachment proceedings against him for alleged corrupt practices and misconduct.

A bench of justices GS Singhvi and CK Prasad had reserved the order on June 1 after hearing for over five days on Dinakaran’s petition which was opposed by the government and the Rajya Sabha appointed panel.

Rajya Sabha chairman Hamid Ansari had in January 2010 constituted a three-member panel comprising Supreme Court judge justice Aftab Alam, Karnataka high court chief justice JS Khehar and senior advocate PP Rao to examine the 12 charges framed in the notice of motion adopted by the House.

Justice Dinakaran had challenged the proceedings on the ground that the panel had framed additional charges and was also independently conducting investigations and collecting material against him which, according to the judge, was not permissible under law. He has also sought recusal of senior counsel PP Rao.

The charges against the judge include land grabbing, accumulation of unaccounted assets, passing judicial order for extraneous considerations, following which his elevation to the Supreme Court was also stalled.

The apex court had on April 29 stayed the probe by the Rajya Sabha-appointed panel after Dinakaran expressed apprehension of a biased inquiry due to Rao’s presence in the panel and that the committee had exceeded its jurisdiction.

 

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