Cash-for-judge scam: Supreme Court panel questions main accused

Chandigarh, Oct 22 : Delhi-based hotelier Ravinder Singh, one of the main accused in the cash-for-judge scam that rocked the city in August, was questioned here Wednesday by a three-member committee set up by the Supreme Court to probe the incident.

He was questioned in camera for over four hours at guesthouse here. Mediapersons were not allowed to enter the premises and there was no media briefing on the proceedings.

The committee comprises Allahabad High Court Chief Justice H.L. Gokhale, Jammu and Kashmir High Court Chief Justice K.S. Radhakrishnan and Justice M.B. Lokur of the Delhi High Court. It was set up by the Chief Justice of India K.G. Balakrishnan.

The Punjab and Haryana High Court was hit by the scam after a packet containing Rs.1.5 million in cash was delivered Aug 13 at the Sector 11 residence of newly appointed high court judge Nirmaljit Kaur. She complained to the police and a case was registered.

The police later arrested the (then) Haryana additional advocate general Sanjeev Bansal, a property dealer Rajiv Gupta and Ravinder Singh in this connection.

Bansal and Gupta told the police that the money was meant for another high court judge, Nirmal Yadav. They claimed that another packet containing Rs 1.5 million was separately delivered to Yadav at her Sector 24 official residence last month.

They had claimed that they delivered the money to the judges on instructions of Singh, who has denied in court that the money was his.

This is the second time the Supreme Court committee has come here to probe the scandal. The committee's probe is separate from that of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the case.

Singh is still in prison while other accused, including Bansal, his assistant Parkash Ram, property dealers Rajiv Gupta and Nirmal Singh are all out on bail.