No judicial probe against Sabharwal: SC

NEW DELHI: In a major set back to those actively seeking a probe into the allegations of corruption against the retired chief justice of India YK Sabharwal, the Supreme Court on Monday refused to order a judicial enquiry into the allegations saying it may prejudice the case of the journalists held guilty of contempt.

“The setting up of judicial committee is not possible. It would prejudice the case of the accused persons (contemners),” a bench headed by Chief Justice KG Balakrishnan said, while rejecting lawyer Manohar Lal Sharma’s petition seeking a judicial inquiry into the allegations made by the Committee of Judicial Accountability (COJA).

COJA comprises of lawyers such as Shanti Bhushan, Ram Jethmalani, Kamini Jaiswal, Prashant Bhushan and Arvind Nigam. The Delhi High Court on September 21 had convicted three journalists of a tabloid for publishing an expose on ex-CJI Sabharwal. The apex court accepted their appeals and stayed the sentence till it decides the legality of the HC judgment. “Those accused are entitled to a fair trial,” the Bench comprising CJI and Justice RV Raveendran said.

Sharma argued that “reckless allegations have been levelled” against former CJI Sabharwal. He said these accusations must be probed properly otherwise people would lose faith in the judiciary. “None of the campaigners has approached the court to resolve the issue judicially and only the media has been used for it,” Sharma added. “No proof or facts have been declared or published and what were published are only allegations,” he said.