Court accepts CBI charge sheet against former HC judge

CHANDIGARH, July 31:  A CBI court today accepted a CBI chargesheet against former Punjab and Haryana High Court Judge, Justice (retd) Nirmal Yadav, and other accused in the 2008 ‘cash-at-judge’s door’ case.

The court of special CBI judge Vimal Kumar observed that charges as per the charge sheet would be framed against the accused.

The court has fixed August 12 as the date for formal framing of charges.

While other accused were present in the over-crowded courtroom today, Justice Yadav stayed away after securing an exemption from appearing in person. He is now expected to appear in court on August 12.

Among the other accused in the case are Sanjiv Bansal, a former Additional Advocate General of Haryana, Delhi-based hotelier Ravinder Singh, and city-based businessman Rajiv Gupta along with one Nirmal Singh.

The case had hit the headlines in 2008 after a packet containing Rs 15 lakh was allegedly mistakenly delivered at the residence of Nirmaljit Kaur, another high court judge.

The CBI in March 2011 charge-sheeted Justice Yadav, who was then a judge in the Uttarakhand High Court, in the case on the day of her retirement.

She had been transferred to Uttarakhand from the Punjab and Haryana High Court in November 2009.

CBI held Justice Yadav as an accused under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.

The rest of the accused, too, have been charge-sheeted under the same law. (PTI)