New Delhi, March 1 (IANS) A court here has issued summons to former Rajya Sabha member Brajesh Pathak in connection with a leave travel concession (LTC) case.
Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Special Judge Anju Bajaj Chandna issued summons to Pathak to appear before the court on March 24.
Delhi-based firm Vandna Travels Private Limited and its director Rajesh Agnihotri have also been summoned.
The court order came while taking cognizance of the CBI chargesheet filed against the company and its director on January 2.
However, the investigating agency did not chargesheet Pathak, saying there was no evidence against him.
But the judge rejected the agency's submission and said: "It is the duty of the investigating officer to forward the final report to the court and no discretion or prerogative lies with the investigative officer to evaluate the defence pleas or to assess the evidence collected on record to appreciate the defence pleas.
"The concept and scheme of Section 13 (1) (d) (criminal misconduct by a public servant for obtaining peculinary gain) of Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 is clear and all the ingredients of the offence are complete in the present case," the court said in its February 20 order.
"Therefore, I hold that investigating officer has no basis to file closure with respect to the offences of Section 13(1)(d) of Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 and read with Section 120 B (criminal conspiracy), 420 (cheating), 467 (forgery of valuable security), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating) and 471 (using as genuine a forged document) of the Indian Penal Code concerning Brajesh Pathak," the court said.
The court observed that Pathak, being a public servant, was under bound duty to furnish the correct and genuine claim with respect to the journeys undertaken by him and the amounts spent by him.
It noted that Pathak countersigned the forged e-tickets to gain pecuniary advantage and the offence was complete when the reimbursement was credited to his account.
The allegations were that during the period 2011-2013, Pathak entered into criminal conspiracy with private people and wrongly claimed inflated reimbursement for eight companion tickets from the pay and accounts office at the Rajya Sabha Secretariat to the tune of Rs.2,19,887.
The actual payment made against the said eight companion tickets was Rs.10,499, and accordingly the excess amount to the tune of Rs.2,09,338 was claimed from the government, it added.
Pathak's tenure as Rajya Sabha member ended on November 25, 2014.
A case has been registered against YouTuber and Bigg Boss OTT-2 winner Elvish Yadav in Sector-49,
SpaceX's rocket may hit the Moon on this day, circling at a speed of 9,000 km / h
SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket: A rocket launched in the year 2015 can hit the Moon in a few weeks. This
The central government is now considering bringing a new rule to reduce electricity consumption i
BJP blames Congress for Jammu and Kashmir problems
New Delhi, Feb 26 (IANS) Blaming the Congress for the present situation in Jammu and Kashmir, F
There is anger in the country after the terrorist attack in Pulwama, Jammu, and Kashmir. Security
T20 captain Surya Kumar Yadav's mother wishes injured cricketer Shreyas Iyer on Chhath.
A mother's love is equal for all her children. Whenever her son or any other child is in trouble,
Terror funding and spread of Islamic terrorism under the guise of madrassas
A Survey of non-government aided madrassas is going on in Uttar Pradesh since last 10 September.
Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz has made 37-year-old Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (M
The Pakistan Cricket Board has claimed that it has made huge profits from hosting the Champions T
Congress: 'UDAN scheme not working on 93% routes,' Kharge targets government citing CAG report
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday claimed that a Comptroller and Auditor General
