HC to examine if it can take up Ranjit Singh’s complaint

JUSTICE RANJIT SINGH (RETIRED) HAD COMPLAINED THAT SAD CHIEF SUKHBIR BADAL AND FORMER MINISTER BIKRAM MAJITHIA BROUGHT DISREPUTE TO THE COMMISSION

The Punjab and Haryana high court will examine its jurisdiction to etertain a complaint by justice Ranjit Singh (retd) against Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal and senior party leader Bikram Singh Majithia filed under the Commissions of Inquiry (CoI) Act for allegedly bringing disrepute to the panel on sacrilege cases.

The high court bench of justice Amit Rawal, hearing the complaint on Monday, said it would also examine whether the former judge, after demitting office of chairman of the commission of inquiry on sacrilege cases, could be exempted from appearing in the court and make submissions on oath.

Justice Singh, who looked into sacrilege cases in Punjab and subsequent firing by police personnel on Sikh protesters in 2015, had filed a complaint against the two Shiromani Akali Dal leaders on January 29 this year.

Senior advocate Puneet Bali, appearing for Sukhbir and Majithia, submitted that when the complaint was made he had demitted the office. Hence, the high court could not have entertained the complaint under the Commissions of Inquiry Act and he is not exempted from appearance before the court. “Nobody will retire in this country,” Bali said stressing that if Singh’s argument is accepted, “God help this country.”

On the other hand, Ranjit Singh’s counsel, senior advocate, APS Deol, said the act of alleged disrepute was committed when he was in the office and was in his right to invoke the privileges of a commission of inquiry.

“If he has demitted the office, he is not remediless,” he further said.

As per the petition, the alleged press conferences that amounted to bringing disrepute were held by Sukhbir and Majithia on August 22 and 23 and the commission of inquiry wound up on August 31, while the complaint to the high court was made on January 29.

Bali also questioned how the former judge has filed a “wrong” affidavit claiming to be a chairman of the commission of inquiry, whereas he had demitted the office by January 29.

Earlier as the bench assembled at 2 pm, Bali made a mention for hearing and brought to the knowledge of the court the content of a message being circulated, allegedly sent by justice Singh to acting chief justice after Friday’s hearing, complaining that the matter was being heard in an ‘undue haste’.

The purported message questions why the case on Friday was taken up leaving aside even urgent cases.

“His disrepute is disrepute…and disrepute to the institution (high court) is not disrepute,” the senior lawyer Bali said, adding that if the purported message was sent by former judge Ranjit Singh, it was a case of criminal contempt.

He further stated that the matter has always been taken up at 2pm and it was in February 2019 itself when notice was issued and the court had made clear that it would first deal with maintainability of the complaint.

The court fixed October 29 for the next hearing.