Former Haryana chief minister Om Prakash Chautala was on Wednesday ordered to be put on trial by a Delhi court for allegedly possessing wealth exceeding his legal income.
Special CBI Judge P.S. Teji ordered Chautala’s formal trial, framing charges against him under various sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The court had reserved its order on framing of charges against 75-year-old Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) leader on July 27, observing that despite having been given the “last opportunity” to complete his arguments, his counsel did not do it.
The CBI had on March 26, 2010 filed a charge sheet against Chautala, indicting him for allegedly possessing assets worth Rs 6.09 crores, far exceeding the known sources of his income between 1993 and 2006.
Meanwhile, after hearing arguments from the counsel of Chautala and CBI, the court also reserved its order for August 5 on Chautala’s plea seeking permission to go abroad.
The CBI prosecutor A.K. Dutta vehemently opposed his plea for going abroad from August 8 to August 30.
The CBI, in its charge sheet, has said that Chautala’s wealth is 189 per cent more than his income of Rs 3.22 crores during the period.
Chautala had last held the post of Haryana chief minister between July 1999 and March 2005.
CBI had registered the case against Chautala in April 2006 and had searched his 24 premises in Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Chandigarh. It had seized Rs 13 lakhs in cash besides freezing five bank accounts having Rs 1.34 crores.
The court had earlier ordered trial against Chautala’s son Abhay on the same charges of possessing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income. It had also filed charge sheet against his son Ajay Chautala in a disproportionate assets case.