Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Aug 31: Division Bench of State High Court comprising Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice B S Walia has set-aside the judgment of Special Judge Anticorruption Jammu in the much publicized Birpur land scam whereby five years rigorous imprisonment was awarded to the then Additional Deputy Commissioner Jammu Khazan Chand and others.
The case against the then ADC and others was registered by the Vigilance Organization Jammu for alleged illegalities in the transfer of land to Army for defense purposes and the trial court vide impugned judgment had convicted the appellants and imposed the sentence as well as fine.
While setting-aside the conviction, the DB observed, “the deceased had made payment to the beneficiaries in pursuance of an award passed in their favour. No material has been placed by the prosecution on record that the award was either challenged in a higher forum or was set aside, therefore, the entitlement of the beneficiaries to the compensation paid remains”.
“Therefore payment of compensation was rightly made to the persons who were entitled to the same. Besides that, no material has been brought on record by the prosecution to show that deceased Khazan Chand received any pecuniary advantage or consideration for facilitating payment of the amount of compensation to the beneficiaries”, the DB said, adding “the prosecution has failed to prove the charge of conspiracy as well as the charge that the appellant had obtained any pecuniary advantage for disbursement of the compensation in favour of the beneficiaries”.
“Similarly, the prosecution has failed to prove that the respondent had tampered with the cheque by inserting the word ‘Addl’ in view of the fact that accused Keshav Chand has already been acquitted by the trial court itself”, the DB said.
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