Chargesheet against Dhumal soon: Himachal CM

Shimla, Feb 6 (IANS) Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh Friday said the government would soon file a chargesheet against BJP leader and two-time chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal.

The state vigilance and anti-corruption bureau had last June registered a case against Dhumal and others for alleged misuse of position when he held office in 2007.

"A chargesheet has been prepared against Dhumal and the officers involved in the case and would be filed soon in the court," the chief minister told reporters here.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader was booked under the Prevention of Corruption Act for favouring Indian Police Service officer A.N. Sharma, who is now retired.

Sharma, who is also named in the first information report (FIR), had applied for voluntary retirement from the police service to contest the 2007 assembly elections on the BJP ticket. But he did not get the ticket from the BJP.

At that time, the Congress led by Virbhadra Singh was in power in the state.

In that 2007 assembly elections, the BJP returned to power. The BJP allowed Sharma to withdraw his resignation to rejoin the service. The BJP government led by Dhumal promoted Sharma to the rank of inspector general of police.

The FIR was registered under different sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Then principal secretary (home) P.C. Kapoor, who is who is now retired, was also named in the case.

On being asked that previous governor Urmila Singh last month refused to grant sanction to prosecute Dhumal in the case, the chief minister clarified that she stated the correct position as per the settled position of law.

"In my case too, no sanction was sought either from the governor or from the President of India in cases against me," he said.

Urmila Singh, whose term concluded Jan 26, advised the government that there was no need for her intervention to grant prosecution sanction against Dhumal.

Citing Supreme Court judgments, the governor's report said "once a public servants demits his office in respect of which the offence was alleged to have committed sanction under the Prevention of Corruption Act of 1988 is not required".

However, the governor, getting tough against the officers responsible for seeking the prosecution sanction from her, said in her report "details of settled position of law have been knowingly concealed by the officers while submitting this matter which is a grave misconduct. Major penalty be initiated forthwith against all concerned".