New Delhi, Sep 7 The Supreme Court on Monday stayed the summons issued by the Lok Sabha Secretariat to the Superintendent of Police of Jharkhand's Deoghar seeking his appearance before the house's Committee on Privileges after a BJP MP from the state filed a complaint against him.
A bench comprising Justices L. Nageswara Rao and Hemant Gupta said: "Issue notice, returnable in four weeks. There shall be stay of further proceedings pursuant to the notice dated July 16, and the office memorandum dated August 28."
BJP MP Nishikant Dubey had filed a complaint with the Committee, claiming that some officials of the JMM-led Jharkhand government allegedly conspired to defame him and his family by implicating them in false criminal cases. Dubey claimed their aim was to create obstacles in his functioning as a lawmaker.
A plea was filed by Jharkhand's acting Director General of Police M.V. Rao seeking direction to the Lok Sabha Secretariat's Privileges and Ethics Branch and the Committee of Privileges to bring on record the proceedings in connection with the alleged breach of privilege, following the complaint by Dubey.
Senior lawyer Fali Nariman, along with advocates Arunabh Chowdhury and Pragya Baghel, represented the petitioner, who claimed that the notice/complaint for alleged breach of privilege filed by Dubey is vague and does not make out any case of breach of privilege.
Two separate FIRs were filed in July in Deogarh against Dubey's family members and others for alleged offences of cheating and using forged documents in connection with a property deal.
"The impugned action is ex-facie without jurisdiction and a blatant case of misuse of the power of privilege and transgresses into the power and jurisdiction of the police to register and investigate a crime in a case disclosing cognizable offences," said the plea.
The Committee of Privileges' notice said: "Oral evidence of Shri Piyush Pandey, Superintendent of Police, Deoghar on the notice of breach of privilege dated 16 July, 2020 given by Dr. Nishikant Dubey, MP against some officials of Govt. of Jharkhand for allegedly conspiring to defame him and for misusing Government machinery for implicating him and his family members in false cases with intention to cause hindrance in his parliamentary work and duty."
( With inputs from IANS )
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