Bombay High Court
The Bombay High Court has dismissed two Trial Court Judges who were accused of corruption for misconduct.
After an inquiry by a disciplinary committee, the decision came up to dismiss Additional Sessions Judge Dhananjay Nikam and Civil Judge Irfan Shaikh.
While Nikam has been accused of bribery, Shaikh, who presided over cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (NDPS Act) allegedly indulged in corruption and misappropriated narcotic substances seized during investigations.
A Petition filed in the High Court against Shaikh is still pending. The High Court ordered the dismissal of the two Judges yesterday.
The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) had registered a case against Nikam, Satara District and Sessions Judge, for allegedly demanding a bribe of Rs. 5 lakh to grant bail in a cheating case. In January this year, he approached the High Court seeking anticipatory bail, claiming that he was innocent and had been implicated in the case.
The High Court had denied anticipatory bail to Nikam in March this year. As per the complaint lodged by a woman, her father, a civilian defence employee, is in judicial custody for allegedly cheating someone under the pretext of offering a government job. After a lower Court denied his bail, the woman filed a fresh Bail Application in the Satara Sessions Court, and Nikam heard the plea.
The ACB had alleged that one Kishor Sambhaji Kharat from Mumbai and Anand Mohan Kharat from Satara demanded Rs 5 lakh from the woman at Nikam's behest for a favourable order. The probe agency claimed that the bribe demand was verified during their investigation between December 3 and 9, 2024, confirming that Nikam, in collusion with the Kharats, sought the bribe.
The ACB had booked Nikam, the Kharats, and an unidentified individual under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (PC Act).
With PTI Inputs