Disproportionate Assets Case: Mohali court rejects ex-minister Dharamsot’s bail plea - Hindustan Times
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Disproportionate Assets Case: Mohali court rejects ex-minister Dharamsot’s bail plea

By, Mohali
Mar 04, 2023 10:33 PM IST

A local Mohali court on Saturday denied regular bail to former Punjab forest minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot in a Prevention of Corruption Act case registered at vigilance bureau police station, Mohali on February 6, 2023.

A local Mohali court on Saturday denied regular bail to former Punjab forest minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot in a Prevention of Corruption Act case registered at vigilance bureau police station, Mohali on February 6, 2023.

Court of Parminder Singh Grewal, Judge, special court, Mohali stated that a detailed vigilance enquiry dated August 5, 2022 was conducted against the Dharamsot by the vigilance bureau before registration of the FIR. (Representational Photo (Getty Images/iStockphoto) )
Court of Parminder Singh Grewal, Judge, special court, Mohali stated that a detailed vigilance enquiry dated August 5, 2022 was conducted against the Dharamsot by the vigilance bureau before registration of the FIR. (Representational Photo (Getty Images/iStockphoto) )

Denying bail to Dharamsot, who is also five times MLA, court of Parminder Singh Grewal, Judge, special court, Mohali stated that a detailed vigilance enquiry dated August 5, 2022 was conducted against the Dharamsot by the vigilance bureau before registration of the FIR.

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Court observed that the petitioner had pleaded in the bail petition that Dharamsot’s son Harpreet Singh had purchased a plot measuring 500 square yards from one Raj Kumar at the rate of 25 lakh which was paid by him from his own bank account to Kumar.

“It is very strange that despite there being the collector rate of 20,000 per square yard of such properties situated in Mohali, which comes out to be 1 crore for such 500 sq.yards plot, the son of the petitioner has purchased the same at much lower and undervalued rate of 25 lakh only which shows the shady character of the said plot purchase deal of the petitioner’s son. Similar is the case with regard to another 500 sq.yards plot allegedly purchased by another son Gurpreet Singh of the petitioner in his name,” the court stated.

The special Court highlighting the investigation added that the aforesaid alleged sellers were served notices on their addresses mentioned in the GMADA records by the investigation officer for joining the investigation but these sellers were not found to be residing at those addresses. Court said that this also shows the alleged shady character of the aforesaid land deals of the petitioner and his family members.

The court further observed that while sons of the former minister in their statement claimed that aforesaid properties were purchased with the savings amount of their father, on other hand Dharamsot took the plea in his bail that his sons purchased these properties with their own income as they are income tax payers and thus this false and concocted plea taken by the petitioner in his bail plea could not be accepted by the court and it disentitles the petitioner to be released on regular bail in this case.

Seeking bail, Dharamsot had submitted that he became an eyesore of Aam Aadmi Party as Gurdev Singh Maan lost election, being its candidate, by a huge margin of votes during 2017 elections, however he lost to Gurdev Singh in 2022 assembly elections.

Dharamsot blamed Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann for targeting him. He added that he was again picked by the vigilance bureau in a disproportionate assets case on February 6, 2023 ahead of Jalandhar bye-elections. He termed the FIR as an outcome of political vendetta against him.

Opposing the bail petition of the former minister, the Public Prosecutor for the State assisted by the Vigilance DSP Navdeep Singh alleged that the petitioner had amassed huge disproportionate properties to the known sources of his income in his own name as well as in the name of his family members.

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