The Bombay High Court will hear on Wednesday the quashing petition filed by Advocate Shekhar Jagtap against whom an FIR was registered by the Colaba police on Monday for allegedly forging letters appointing him as a special public prosecutor (SPP) in cases against former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh. Jagtap had filed the petition on Monday evening, which was mentioned before a bench headed by justice PD Naik on Tuesday. However, Justice Naik recused from the matter saying: “Not before me.”
The plea was then mentioned before a bench of Justices AS Chandurkar and Jitendra Jain in the afternoon session, which will take up the petition for hearing on Wednesday. The matter relates to complaints filed against Param Bir Singh and businessman Sanjay Punamiya by another businessman Shyam Sunder Agarwal.
Jagtap seeks quashing of FIR
Seeking quashing of the FIR, Jagtap has contended that he is being falsely implicated in the case and that accused Punamiya had filed several other complaints against him before the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa (BCMG) and before the sessions court as well. On September 3, 2023, the BCMG had dismissed the preliminary enquiry initiated against Jagtap following Punamiya’s complaint.
His plea emphasises that he was appointed as SPP, after following due process of law, in a series of cases between July to December 2021. He was appointed as SPP to appear before the magistrate on July 21, 2021. Subsequently, he was appointed to appear as SPP before the sessions court as well.
Details of plea
The plea alleges that the State has failed to exercise its power in accordance with law and “arbitrarily” and “mechanically” registered the FIR, without any basis of the commission of the offence, the plea adds. Jagtap, who has 23 years of legal practice, has contended that he was empaneled by the State of Maharashtra as “A Panel” counsel since 2019. He was appointed as Special Counsel in the Socially and Economically Backward Class (SEBC) Reservation Act of Maratha Reservation before the Supreme Court. Also, the chief minister took his name in the Vidhan Sabha’s winter session as well as special session on February 20, 2024, in relation to Maratha reservation.
