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Odisha ex-judge Ishrat Masroor Quddusi has a chequered history

Quddusi first hit headlines when, as a judge of Allahabad High Court, he held court at New Delhi railway station in 2000.

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Retired Odisha judge Ishrat Masroor Quddusi, who was arrested in an alleged corruption case on Thursday, is known for his impulsive and unorthodox attitude. Quddusi, his close aide Bhawna Pandey, middleman Vishwanath Agarwal, hawala operator Ram Dev Saraswat and owners of private medical college BP Yadav and Palash Yadav were arrested for allegedly enabling a private medical colleges to admit students to courses despite a Supreme Court order barring admission. They were produced before a city court which sent them to four-day CBI custody.

Quddusi first hit headlines when, as a judge of Allahabad High Court, he held court at New Delhi railway station in 2000. A deputy railway station master had denied him a reserved AC berth. He also asked a railway official to stop the train and when the official refused, Quddusi charged him with "contempt of court".

He demanded Sharma touch his feet and seek pardon. Left with no option, Sharma did so. A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petition was filed in Supreme Court seeking an inquiry into the incident, however it was withdrawn.

His name figured in headlines again in July, 2003, when his 27-year-old son Rahat opened fire on his in-laws in Kanpur, injuring his father-in-law SA Khan. Rahat had driven down from Lucknow in his father's red beacon-fitted car.

In 2014, a video purportedly showcasing Justice (retired) Quddusi and Bhawna Pandey in talks with someone to "fix a deal" appeared on social networking sites but the matter died down.

Special Judge Manoj Jain sent Quddusi and others to custody after the central probe agency said their custodial interrogation was required to unearth the "larger nexus" in the alleged medical college scam issue.

The CBI has charged Quddusi with acting as a conduit between the authorities of the private colleges and MCI officials. He used to fix deals that would ensure MCI recognition to colleges which were struggling to get it.

Quddusi and Pandey had assured Prasad Education Trust in Lucknow that they would get the matter – a reverse on an order barring a medical college from admitting students due to substandard facilities and non-fulfillment of required criteria — settled in the Supreme Court through their contacts.

According to the CBI FIR, Prasad Institute of Medical Science in Lucknow was among the 46 medical institutes that were barred by the government from admitting new students because of shortcomings in Infrastructure.

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