LAGATAR24 NETWORK
Ranchi, April 22: The Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) has directed the Jharkhand government to revoke the suspension of additional director general of police (ADGP)Anurag Gupta.
Senior standing counsel of CAT Rajendra Krishna confirmed the development without sharing any details in this connection.
Gupta had been put under suspension on February 14, 2020.
On May 26 last year, chief minister Hemant Soren approved prosecution of ADG Gupta along with chief minister Raghubar Das and former political adviser to chief minister Ajay Kumar under Prevention of Corruption Act for their involvement in horse trading during 2016 Rajya Sabha election.
The approval was given following the direction of the election commission on June 13, 2017 to the then chief secretary Rajbala Verma to start criminal and department proceedings against them for misuse of official position, interference in election, breach of conduct/service rules and other relevant offences.
The commission gave direction after Babulal Marandi, who was then running a separate political party, Jharkhand Vikas Morcha, exposed the matter before it. Marandi, now the BJP legislature party chief, had released a compact disc (CD) on July 15, 2016 nearly one after one month after the Rajya Sabha election that took place on June 11, 2016.
CD that contained telephonic conversations between ADG Gupta, CM’s political adviser, Ajay Kumar and a former Congress minister Yogendra Sao, whose wife Nirmala Devi was then a sitting legislator.
Following the directions, a criminal case was registered at Jagannathpur police station. Except Gupta, departmental proceedings were not started against any of the two accused.
Earlier, on August 11 last year The Jharkhand High Court directed ‘no coercive’ action against suspended Gupta.
