SC declines plea for regular case against Yadav

The Supreme Court on Monday declined to entertain an application seeking registration of regular disproportionate assets case against SP leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, his sons Prateek Yadav and Akhilesh Yadav.

A bench of Justices Ranjan Gogoi and Prafulla C. Pant dismissed an application filed by Vishwanatha Chaturvedi, on whose petition the CBI had conducted a preliminary enquiry on the basis of an order passed by the apex court. Subsequently, review petitions were filed and in 2012, the apex court dropped case against Dimple Yadav and in respect of others, it said CBI will take action in accordance with law.

In the fresh application, Mr. Chaturvedi submitted that the judgement in the review is still pending and that orders are to be passed to direct CBI for probe. Senior counsel K.T.S. Tulsi, appearing for the applicant, submitted that being a complainant he was entitled to know what action had been taken by the CBI.

The petitioner stated that despite the yawning gap between the complaint made. the court’s directions and the pendency of filing of a regular case in this matter, an unusually long period has already escaped without any action being taken on the matter for nine long years. He wanted the CBI to register a regular case and to conduct a fair, impartial and immediate investigation leading to prosecution of the offenders without reporting to the jurisdictional magistrate and applicant/petitioner.

The bench, however dismissed the petition stating that since orders had already been passed in the review petition in December 2012, nothing survived and the application had become infructuous. The bench made it clear to the petitioner that what he is demanding is a separate cause of action, for which he has to seek a separate remedy.