Patna: The Patna High Court Friday asked
senior BJP MLA Ramadhar Singh, who had to resign as state Cooperative Minister, to surrender as he has been declared an absconder by a court in Aurangabad district 16 years ago.
Justice Shailesh Kumar Sinha, while hearing the
application filed by Singh seeking quashing of the subordinate
court`s order, said the matter relates to 1995 and, therefore,
the petitioner, who quit yesterday, is being directed to
surrender before the court below.
The petitioner would give prior information to the
state and the appropriate lower court about the date of his
surrender and the lower court would examine about the process
and dispose of the matter the same day, justice Sinha ruled.
Earlier, appearing on behalf of Singh, advocate Ajay
Thakur pleaded that the order of court declaring him as
absconder in the case lodged in 1992 be quashed.
He argued that no summons, bailable or non-bailable warrants of arrested had been served on his client (Singh) in the instant case.
Patna HC asks Ramadhar Singh to surrender
The moment his client came to know about the fact that
he had been declared absconder by a court way back in 1995,
he decided to approach the high court for relief, Thakur said.
Singh had resigned as Cooperative Minister yesterday a
day after the RJD petitioned Governor Devanand Konwar
seeking dismissal of the minister in the wake of the lower
court`s order.
Singh had maintained he resigned after he got the court
records and related documents and found that he was declared
an absconder in a case in May 1995 by a court in Aurangabad
district.
Singh was declared an absconder by a court in May 1995
after he repeatedly failed to appear before it in connection
with the case.
PTI
