SC rejects Bibi Jagir Kaur’s plea to contest elections
Wednesday, 18/01/2017
http://epaper.dailypostindia.com/Details.aspx?id=171619&boxid=65336&uid=&dat=2017-01-18
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected Akali Dal leader and former SGPC chief Bibi Jagir Kaur’s plea for the suspension of her conviction in the 2000 murder case of her daughter Harpreet Kaur to enable her contest the upcoming assembly elections in Punjab. A bench, comprising Justices A K Goel and U U Lalit, refused to entertain the plea of Kaur by brushing aside the submission that she was only convicted on charge of conspiracy and not for murder.
Senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for Kaur, said the leader had been sentenced for five years by a trial court on the charge of conspiracy but not for murder. Suspension of the sentence will enable her to contest the polls, he contended. He said the Punjab and Haryana High Court had already stayed the sentence and if the apex court stayed the conviction, then she can contest the polls.
While the sentence was stayed earlier, the high court bench had yesterday dismissed a similar plea by Kaur seeking stay on her conviction in the case. Kaur’s conviction with sentencing of more than two years period makes her ineligible to contest the election as per the Representation of People Act, 1951. She is out on bail since November 2012 but her appeal against the special CBI court’s sentence is still pending in the High Court. On January 8, 2010, the apex court had directed the Sessions Court to expeditiously decide the case and complete it in six months. In 2012, she was convicted for offences-forcible abortion, wrongful confinement, abduction and criminal conspiracy. The former Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) chief’s daughter Harpreet had allegedly married a person against the wishes of her mother. Harpreet was found dead under mysterious circumstances.
Beant’s daughter rejoins Cong
Patiala: Gurkanwal Kaur, daughter of former Punjab chief minister late Beant Singh, returned to the Congress fold on Tuesday after joining the BJP on Saturday. Gurkanwal was welcomed into the Congress by PCC president Amarinder Singh and Patiala MLA Preneet Kaur, who said her ‘homecoming’ was an endorsement of the Congress wave in Punjab ahead of the assembly elections.
Amarinder said Gurkanwal had some minor grudges, which the party had addressed. Gurkanwal, on her part, said she was happy to be back in her ‘political family.’ She was an MLA from Jalandhar Cantonment from 2002 to 2007 and a minister in Punjab government. Gurkanwal is the sister of former minister Tej Prakash Singh and aunt of Congress MP Ravneet Singh Bittu and MLA Gurkeerat Kotli.
