New Delhi: The Supreme Court Friday dismissed
former Chief Justice of Sikkim High Court P D Dinakaran`s plea challenging the Rajya Sabha-appointed committee`s decision to frame charges against him by allegedly exceeding
its jurisdiction.
A bench headed by Justice G S Singhvi also rejected his
contention that the panel has no power to conduct preliminary
inquiry against him.
Justice Dinakaran, who resigned from the post in view of
impeachment proceedings against him, had contended the
committee had exceeded its jurisdiction by framing 14 charges
on the basis of fresh complaints whereas there were only 12
charges at the time when the motion was introduced in
Parliament.
The former judge, who faces various charges including
amassing disproportionate wealth and judicial misconduct, had
alleged the fresh charges were "ultra vires" as they went
beyond the original charges contained in the Rajya Sabha
motion.
"It will be naive to contend that the committee has no
discretion in the matter of framing charges. Rather, the
committee is duty-bound to carefully scrutinise the material
forming part of the notice of motion and then frame definite
charges. The committee can also receive other material which
may support or contradict the allegations enumerated in the
notice of motion," the bench said.
PTI
