Allahabad High Court Judge Recuses From Hearing Ex-MLA Mukhtar Ansari's Chargesheet Quashing Plea In Funds Misappropriation Case

Justice Rajiv Gupta of the Allahabad High Court on Wednesday recused himself from hearing a petition filed by former MLA Mukhtar Ansari (presently in jail) seeking to quash a chargesheet filed against him by the Uttar Pradesh police in connection with a case of misappropriation of MLA Funds fund in the year 2012-13.

"The case stands released. Put up before another Bench after seeking nomination from Hon'ble The Chief Justice/ Senior Judge, if possible on 02.05.2022 as fresh, showing the name of Shri Ratnendu Kumar Singh as counsel for the State," the Bench remarked today when the case came before it for hearing.

Ansari is a former M.L.A. of Mau Sadar constituency of Uttar Pradesh and he continued as M.L.A. from the year 1996 to March, 2022 as in the recent election, he did not contest the election.

The case in brief 

An FIR was lodged last year against Ansari mentioning therein that Ansari, as an M.L.A., in the years 2012, 2013 & 2014, allocated Rs. 25 Lacs from his M.L.A. fund to a school, however, when the inspection was done, it was found that the money had not been properly utilized by the said School.

It has been alleged that during the investigation, it had been found that the money which was obtained by the other accused persons, was in fact not utilized for the construction of the school.

Ansari has moved before the HC challenging the Chargesheet arguing that the only role which has been assigned to him is that he made a proposal for payment of his fund to the said school. 

In his plea, Ansari has claimed that he has been in jail for 17 years and there had been no wrongdoing on his part. It has also been submitted by him that it is the job of the district administration to check the veracity of the recommendations made by him and the schools.

The State Govt. has issued a Govt. Order in which it has been clearly laid down the procedure for the expenditure of M.L.A. fund and in the said Govt. Order, it has been clearly provided that the Chief Development Officer of the District is responsible for the disbursement of the fund and the only role of an M.L.A. is to recommend for the expenditure of the fund in his constituency which has been done by the applicant (Ansari)," his plea avers.

The plea further states that the applicant was neither entrusted with the property nor did he prepare any forged document for release of the said fund and in fact, the District Administration had released the said fund after a proper inquiry.

Further, stressing that only due to political reasons, he has been nominated in the present case as an accused, the plea further concludes by contending thus:

"The Investigating Officer himself, has not charge-sheeted the accused persons under section 409 I.P.C. for misappropriation of money as it would has been implicated the District Administration who was entrusted with the money. In the present case, in fact there is no evidence of conspiracy by the applicant but he has been implicated in the present case only due to political vendetta as after about 8 years, the enquiry report was prepared by the Police Officers and subsequently the applicant has been charge sheeted in the present matter. The Investigating Officer has filed the impugned charge sheet in the present matter implicating the applicant. On the said charge sheet the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Mau has taken cognizance and has issued summons against the applicant. In fact no offence has been committed by the applicant for alleged section which has been mentioned in the charge sheet and the charge sheet as well as the Cognizance order against the applicant is based on malafide at large."

Advocate Upendra Upadhyay appeared for Mukhtar Ansari and G.A.Ratnendu Kumar Singh appeared for the state.

Case title - Mukhtar Ansari @ Mokhtar Ansari v. State of U.P. and Another [APPLICATION U/S 482 No. - 9722 of 2022]

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