FPJ Legal: Madhya Pradesh High Court imposes fine of Rs 1 Lakh on BJP MLA for hiding facts in petition

Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh): High Court has imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on a BJP MLA Ram Lallu Vaishya for hiding facts in a petition filed in the High Court.

The Division bench led by Chief Justice Ravi Malimath and Justice Pushpendra Kumar Kaurav during hearing on Monday had also cancelled the PIL.

According to reports, Ram Lallu Vaishya, a resident of Majhauli village, Singrauli district had filed the petition in the High Court. Counsel for the petitioner, Advocate KK Singh, argued that Coal India and Northern CoalFields Limited together were illegally mining coal on the land of his client and it should be stopped.

On the other hand, government advocate Ankit Agarwal countered and said that there had been an old dispute between the petitioner and the coal companies in this regard. Besides, three petitions were pending in the Madhya Pradesh High Court in this connection, Agarwal added.

After that the division bench of the judge asked the petitioner's advocate about other pending petitions. On which advocate Singh apologized before the judges for not bringing the facts to the notice of the court.

Nonetheless, the petitioner has mentioned in the affidavit of the petition that no matter was pending in any court in this regard.

The court, however, said that it was not a matter that the apology could be accepted. The facts had been deliberately suppressed and it was a violation of law.