Delhi HC directs district judge to ensure record of 60,000 pages of 17-year-old cheating case is traced

By Dhiraj Beniwal
New Delhi [India], January 27 : The Delhi High Court recently directed the Principal District and Sessions Judge of Patiala House Court to ensure that the untraceable record, running into 60,000 pages, of a case of the Delhi Police Crime Branch (EOW) related to cheating lodged in 2007 against SK Thapar is traced.
The Delhi High Court passed the direction while dealing with a petition challenging a trial court order refusing to release an attached property in Uttarakhand by Delhi police but the said record is not traceable.
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma directed the principal district judge to trace and produce the untraceable record within two months.
"The learned principal judge of the District and Sessions Court is directed to ensure that this document is traced and placed before this court before the next date of hearing, " Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma ordered on January 23.
Justice Sharma said that two months' time is granted in this case considering the fact that it is a voluminous judicial record.
The high court passed the direction on an application moved by the legal heir of the deceased Amarpal through advocate Meenal Duggal challenging the order of April 28, 2023, passed by ACMM-II, Patiala House Courts, New Delhi.
By way of this order, the Judge had said, "In the case at hand, as per the report received from the Sub-Registrar, Roorkee, Haridwar, the Predecessor of this Court had put an embargo on further sale/purchase of the above-mentioned property vide order dated 10.012.2009. However, the said order is not traceable on record as the matter is very old and the judicial file is running into around 60,000 pages," the trial court order reads.
The high court observed, "In these circumstances, since this document is the most essential document that would become the basis of adjudication of this matter either before this Court or the court below,"
The matter has been listed on April 15, 2024. While arguing before the trial court, it was submitted by Meenal Duggal's counsel for the applicant that Land measuring 100.332 sq.m. situated at Village Haldhedi Rajputan, Pargana, Tehsil, Roorkee, District Hardwar, stands mutated in the name of the applicant.
It was further submitted that the said land cannot be registered under his name, as this court by way of its order dated 10.12.2009 has put a bar upon the transfer/sale/interest of the aforesaid property.
It was further submitted that the applicant herein is a bona fide purchaser of the aforesaid property/land, a great prejudice shall be caused to the applicant if the registration of the said land is not permitted.
On the other hand, the application was opposed by the state. The additional public prosecutor (APP) submitted that the matter is pending at the stage of arguments on charge and at this stage, it cannot be said with certainty that the applicant is a bona fide purchaser of the said land or not. It was prayed that the application be dismissed.
The trial court had also noted that in the application at hand, the applicant is neither the victim/ investor nor the accused. The accused from whom the applicant allegedly bought the above-mentioned land is PO in this case.
As per the report of the IO, the land of Application qua, on which he is seeking lifting of the embargo was purchased by the accused persons by using a cheated amount, the trial court noted in the order of April 28, 2023.
The trial court had dismissed the application by saying that in the case at hand, as per the report received from Sub Registrar, Roorkee, Haridwar, the ld., the predecessor of this court had put an embargo on further sale/purchase of the above-mentioned property via an order dated 10.12.2009. However, the said order is not traceable on record as the matter is very old and the judicial file is running into around 60,000 pages.
In August 2022, the Investigating Officer, ACP Mukesh Walia, in case titled as State V s SK Thapar, duly filed a reply to the said Application, however, he did not produce a copy of any court order by virtue of which a ban had been imposed upon the. Sale/ transfer/ registry of the property in dispute.
The petition filed before the high court has stated that at the time of booking Lt. Sh. Amarpal Singh paid an amount of Rs. 40000 while the total sale consideration amount was Rs.418440. It was agreed at the time of the booking that the remaining amount has to be paid in 27 equal monthly instalments.
It is also submitted, on 2nd September 2009, Lt. Sh. Amarpal Singh post completing the remaining payments, executed the plot buyer agreement with M/S Vian Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd. At the said time also, neither any official nor any director informed Lt. Sh. Amarpal Singh about the registration of the said FIR for the crime branch.