By IANS,
New Delhi : The Delhi High Court Thursday rejected the plea of former Uttar Pradesh chief secretary Akhand Pratap Singh, challenging his prosecution in a disproportionate assets case saying no prior sanction was taken before initiating proceedings against him.
Justice S.L. Bhayana dismissed the petition of the former bureaucrat, saying the issue had already been decided by the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), in a charge sheet filed against Singh in March last year, alleged that the accused as an Indian Administration Service (IAS) officer of 1967 batch amassed disproportionate assets to the tune of Rs.28.8 million during the period April 1982 to March 1998.
A total of 40 immovable properties located in posh localities of New Delhi, Lucknow, Bahraich and Nainital worth Rs 18.3 million, allegedly acquired in false names, were owned by Singh.
More than 85 properties and over 100 bank accounts were allegedly unearthed during CBI investigation.
He is also accused of forging the signatures of his late father and a friend for transferring the properties and routing financial transactions through several fictitious bank accounts.
The CBI had registered a case against him March 19, 2005 under various provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Akhand Pratap Singh, who retired in 2003, had invested huge sums of money in several private limited companies with his relatives, friends and family members, who were shown as promoters and directors of the companies.
He is the second chief secretary of Uttar Pradesh to be caught in a corruption case. Earlier, his predecessor D.S. Bagga was nailed and suspended in the multi-million Taj Corridor scam.