Former minister Garcha acquitted in graft case
Tuesday, 01/09/2015
http://www.indiapress.org/gen/news.php/The_Tribune/
Ludhiana : Additional Sessions Judge JatinderPal Singh Khurmi today acquitted former Technical Education Minister Jagdish Singh Garcha and four others in a corruption case of 2003.
The court also acquitted his wife Daljit Kaur, brothers Sukhdev Singh Garcha, ex-MLA Mann Singh Garcha, Harpreet Singh and Ravinder Arora in the case.
Pronouncing the verdict, the court held that prosecution had miserably failed to prove the charges levelled against them. So, they stand acquitted.
The prosecution said that during the period of 1997-2002 being a minister, Jagdish Garcha misused his position and amassed huge wealth worth crores in connivance with other accused. It was alleged that the gross irregularities were committed in the colleges and distance education centres being run under the Punjab Technical University.
The case was registered during the Congress regime in state on May 7, 2003, at the Vigilance Bureau police station, Ludhiana.
However, during the trial, the accused pleaded innocence and claimed it was a case of political vendetta.
