New Delhi [India], April 7 : The Delhi High Court on Tuesday issued notice on an appeal filed by former Congress MLA Rajender Bharti challenging his conviction and three-year sentence in the Gramin Vikas Bank cheating case, which led to his disqualification from the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly.
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma sought a response from the State and listed the matter for April 15. Bharti has also sought a stay on his conviction and moved an application requesting the court to direct the Election Commission not to notify elections for the now-vacant seat following his disqualification. Advocate Abhik Chimni appeared for Bharti before the High Court.
On April 2, the Rouse Avenue Court in New Delhi sentenced Bharti to three years' imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh. Co-accused Raghubir Sharan Prajapati was also awarded three years' imprisonment along with a fine of Rs 2.5 lakh. Both were granted bail to challenge the judgment before the High Court.
The case, originally transferred to Delhi by the Supreme Court of India on Bharti's plea, pertains to alleged financial irregularities in the Zila Sahkari Krishi Aur Gramin Vikas Bank. Special Judge Dig Vinay Singh convicted Bharti under Sections 120B, 420, 467, 468, and 471 of the IPC for criminal conspiracy, cheating, and forgery.
According to the prosecution, Bharti's mother, Savitri Shyam, had deposited Rs 10 lakh in 1998 as a fixed deposit under a trust. Instead of withdrawing the maturity amount, she allegedly withdrew annual interest of Rs 1.35 lakh from 1999 to 2011, violating FD terms. The court found that Bharti, then chairman of the bank, used his position to pressure officials and facilitate unauthorised payments.
The complaint, filed in 2015 by bank manager Narender Parmar under Section 200 CrPC, further alleged that records were tampered with to extend the FD tenure from three years to up to fifteen years. The complainant asserted that both Savitri and Bharti conspired to embezzle bank funds for personal dishonest gain.
The accused continued to withdraw interest at the high rate of 13.5% long after the original FD term had expired. Savitri Shyam died during trial.
Additional Public Prosecutor Manish Rawat argued for maximum punishment, citing multiple FIRs against Bharti, while the defence maintained that he had been acquitted in other cases and enjoyed public trust as a three-time MLA.
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