HC seeks AG's opinion on Guv's plea to quash FIR against him

Madhya Pradesh High Court today sought the opinion of the Attorney General on a petition of Governor Ram Naresh Yadav seeking quashing of an FIR against him in connection with the recruitment scam, as he enjoys constitutional immunity.
A division bench of Chief Justice AM Khanwilkar and Justice Alok Aradhe also served notices to the state government, the STF, probing the multi-crore MP Professional Examination Board (MPPEB) scam, and the SIT which is monitoring the STF investigation.
The HC asked the Special Task Force to treat the Governor "gracefully" and refrain from taking "coercive action" against him, after Yadav's counsels Ram Jethmalani, Adarsh Muni Trivedi, Mahendra Pateria and Ashish Trivedi told the court that their client was willing to provide any information to the probe agency in connection with the case.

"The court has said that STF should deal with Governor gracefully and shun from resorting to coercive action," Ashish Trivedi told PTI.
Jethmalani, Trivedi and other lawyers argued that criminal proceedings against the Governor were contrary to provisions of Article 361(2) and Article (3) of the Constitution which grants immunity to the President and governors while in office. They contended that the FIR filed against Yadav was totally illegal.
The court then served notices to the Attorney General, the state government's SIT and STF and fixed March 23 as the next date of hearing in the case.

After an FIR was filed last month against Yadav by the STF, alleging his complicity in the forest guard recruitment exam conducted by the MPPEB, he has been under tremendous pressure to resign.

The Congress and ABVP have staged protests demanding his resignation.
Yadav had even rushed to Delhi, but couldn't get an appointment with President Pranab Mukherjee, Home Minister Rajnath Singh and other leaders.
Besides the Governor, the STF had also filed an FIR against his son Shailesh Yadav in the contractual teachers' recruitment scam.
The STF had earlier arrested the Governor's former Officer On Special Duty (OSD) Dhanraj Yadav, in connection with the scam.