HC to hear plea for taking ND Tiwari' blood sample forcibly

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The Delhi High Court would hear on Monday a plea for taking forcibly the blood sample of veteran Congress leader N.D. Tiwari for his DNA test to decide the paternity suit of Rohit Shekhar, who claims to be his biological son.

Nearly a fortnight after the Delhi High Court asked Tiwari to give his blood sample for DNA test to decide the paternity suit, Shekhar had moved the court last week for forcibly taking his blood sample for the test.

In an application to single-judge bench of justice Reva Khetrapal, Shekhar had sought a direction to former Andhra Pradesh governor Tiwari to comply with high court's December 23, 2010 and April 27, 2012 orders.

Alternatively, Shekhar pleaded to the court to appoint a commissioner to take Tiwari's blood samples with assistance from police force, as mandated by the court's April 27 order.

"Direct the non-applicant 1 (Tiwari) to furnish blood samples at the earliest convenience of this court. In the event that Tiwari fails to appear on the date fixed by the court, appoint a Commissioner to draw blood samples of Tiwari by force or otherwise," Shekhar said in his application.

He also sought the court to direct the police to provide assistance to the Commissioner, to be appointed by the court. On April 27, a bench of Acting Chief Justice A.K. Sikri and Rajiv Sahai Endlaw had said police force can be used to compel Tiwari to give blood sample for the DNA test in case he refuses to undergo the test on the paternity suit.

The bench had passed the orders while hearing Shekhar's plea challenging the single judge's September 23 last year order which had stated that Tiwari cannot be compelled but an adverse inference can be draw from his repeated refusal to give blood samples.

After the high court ordered taking Tiwari's blood sample - even forcibly if needed, Tiwari even approached the apex court, which too refused to give him any relief. "Enough is enough. You (Tiwari) were not present on earlier occasions.''

''Having regard to your age, we had told you to give sample in a sealed cover. We gave you protection under Article 21, but enough is enough," a bench of justices Aftab Alam and C.K. Prasad had said.

Shekhar, in his application, has said that the Congress leader be asked to bear the cost of the execution of the order and be restrained from leaving the country to avoid observing the judicial order.

Earlier, a single-judge bench had said that the order asking Tiwari to undergo the DNA test for ascertaining the paternity Shekhar was 'un-implementable and unenforceable' and hence, he cannot be forced to give his blood sample for this purpose.

Setting aside the order, the division bench of the high court said 'police assistance and use of reasonable force for compliance thereof' can be taken as judicial orders needed to be executed.

Shekhar, in 2008, had filed the paternity suit for getting the Congress leader declared his biological father and the single judge and a division bench of the high court had asked Tiwari to go for the DNA test.

The Supreme Court also did not stay the order and opined that Tiawri should abide by the court orders as vital evidence may be lost for forever considering his old age.

Tiwari, a former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, who had also held key ministerial portfolios at the Centre, was forced to resign as Andhra Pradesh governor in 2009 amid allegations of sexual misconduct against him.