Hearing challenging Himachal CM's acquittal adjourned

The Himachal Pradesh High Court Saturday adjourned till Sep 10 the hearing challenging the acquittal of Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and his wife Pratibha Singh in a 2012 corruption case.

Justice D.C. Chaudhary heard arguments on the plea of S.M. Katwal, former chairman of the state Subordinate Services Selection Board, for condonation of delay of 96 days in filing an appeal.

The application for condonation will be decided before hearing the appeal.

Police booked Virbhadra Singh and Pratibha Singh, then sitting MP from Mandi, Aug 3, 2009, under the Prevention of Corruption Act for alleged misuse of official position and criminal misconduct, when he was the chief minister in 1989.

In 2009, the Bharatiya Janata Party government was in power in the state.

Less than 24 hours before his swearing-in as the chief minister for the sixth time, Congress leader Virbhadra Singh got a major reprieve as a Shimla court Dec 24, 2012 acquitted him and his wife in a three-and-a-half-year-old corruption case.

Katwal has filed an appeal in the high court challenging the orders of the Shimla court.

The petitioner has alleged that the state government has not filed appeal against the orders as it is headed by Virbhadra Singh himself, who was an accused in the case.