Property 'grab' case: 5-member panel report led to reinstatement of Chandigarh cops
Chandigarh, September 25
The order to revoke the suspension of four police personnel, including Inspector Rajdeep Singh, who is an accused in the Sector 37 property “grab” case, has been issued following a report by a five-member committee headed by UT IG Raj Kumar Singh.
House ‘grab’ matter at prosecution stage
In 2021, the police had filed seven challans with regard to the Sector 37 property ‘grab’ matter and framed charges against 10 accused last year. At present, the matter is at the stage of recording prosecution evidence.
Sources said at the meeting held recently, the committee had concluded that all four police personnel, three of whom are facing trial in graft cases, should be reinstated. However, the committee’s report has not been made public. The committee comprised IG Raj Kumar Singh, SSP (Traffic) Manisha Choudhary, UT SSP Kanwardeep Kaur and two Superintendents of Police (SPs) Ketan Bansal and Mridul. The sources said the final node to the re-instatement was given by DGP Praveer Ranjan.
The reinstatement order, which was issued on September 22, states the police personnel are hereby reinstated with immediate effect without prejudice to the outcome of the criminal/departmental proceedings pending against them. Further, they will not be posted on sensitive seats and also will not influence the prosecution witnesses.
SP (Headquarters) Ketan Bansal said any complaints, if received against the cops, may lead to subsequent suspension. The sources said there was a provision under the Punjab Police Rules (PPR) adopted by the UT Administration, as per which the suspension of a cop can be revoked. In March 2021, the Chandigarh Police registered a case on the charges of torture and illegally confining the victim, Rahul Mehta (48), the only surviving heir of his family, in his Sector 37 house in April 2017. Rahul was later abandoned at a stud farm in Gujarat in June 2017, before being shifted from one charitable home to another in Maharashtra, Delhi and Rajasthan, where he was finally traced. The house was further sold for Rs 2.9 crore in March 2019.
