Giving temporary relief, the Supreme Court on Thursday transferred Himachal Pradesh chief minister Virbhadra Singh’s petition, pending in the Himachal Pradesh high court, to the Delhi high court.
A bench of Justices Ibrahim Kalifulla and Udai Lalit passed this order after attorney general Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for the CBI, pointed out that a similar petition is pending in the Delhi high court and the present appeal by the CBI against the Himachal HC order restraining the CBI from arresting Mr Singh can be shifted to one high court. Senior counsel for Mr Singh, Kapil Sibal, agreed to the transfer of the case and accordingly the bench passed the order.
The CBI had registered the FIR in Delhi as Mr Singh was a minister at the Centre at that time. The agency will have to wait till the Delhi HC accedes to the request to arrest Mr Singh for custodial interrogation.
The bench, while shifting the case, clarified that the transfer had been made in view of the peculiar facts and circumstances of the case. The transfer should not be misconstrued to cast any aspersions on the Himachal Pradesh high court or as an act that undermined the country’s federal structure,
In this petition, Mr Singh has challenged the CBI’s FIR against him for allegedly possessing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income. Acting on the CBI appeal, the bench on October 26 had issued notice to Mr Singh to respond to the plea for his custodial interrogation in a case registered under the Prevention of Corruption Act. The bench had also sought the response of Mr Singh’s wife, Pratibha.
