A special court that on Monday denied default or statutory bail to NCP leader and former state home minister Anil Deshmukh in a corruption case probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has said in its detailed order that courts cannot be too technical while entertaining pleas seeking bail on the grounds that the police report or chargesheet was not filed within the stipulated time after arrest.
Such a bail is claimed when the police or investigating agency does not file the chargesheet within the stipulated time, in this case, within 60 days of arrest. Deshmukh had claimed bail contending that the CBI’s chargesheet filed within the deadline of 60 days of arrest was incomplete as documents it had relied on a statement of witnesses were not filed with it and were filed only a few days later.
Special CBI Judge SH Gwalani said in the order that not accompanying the documents and statement of witnesses along with the chargesheet did not in any way make it an incomplete chargesheet for the purpose of consideration of default bail. Accordingly, it held that no grounds were made for grant of such bail.
The court added that the report filed on June 2 was a proper report which compiled with all the requirements of law. Regarding the report, it said that it mentions the names of the parties, nature of information, names of the persons who appeared to be acquainted with the circumstances of the case, the offence which appears to have been committed by each of the accused, etc. Judge Gwalani held that all the necessary information is given in the report. It, therefore, does not matter, the judge said, that the trunk of documents were subsequently filed in the registry of the court.
The case relates to illegal collections allegedly made by Deshmukh from resto-bars in the city when he was the sitting home minister. The agency also alleges he interfered in police transfers and postings and indulged in corruption to give favourable postings. His personal secretary Sanjeev Palande and personal assistant Kundan Shinde are also accused in the case. Their default bail pleas were rejected along with his, in a common order.
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