‘Spy' charge haunts UP judge-in-waiting 11 yrs after acquittal as SC stays HC's appointment order

The Print

3 days ago

The law graduate had been accused of espionage and was charged under the Official Secrets Act, sedition, and criminal conspiracy under the Indian Penal Code in 2002. Although he was acquitted in 2014, the shadow of the past continues to linger—his stalled appointment bearing this fact.
Kumar had cleared the 2016 Uttar Pradesh Higher Judicial Service (Direct Recruitment) Examination. Ranked 27th, his appointment would have been smooth in normal circumstances. Not for the Kanpur man.
New Delhi: The past weighs heavy on Kanpur resident Pradeep Kumar. 'To be suspected of an offence is not an offence or a scar on a citizen's character,' the Allahabad High Court had said in December, clearing the path for his appointment as an additional district judge by 15 January.
In fact, the HC levied an exemplary cost of Rs.10 lakh on the state for 'indifferent attitude' and 'tardiness' shown towards his appointment order that it had recommended in 2017.
The Uttar Pradesh government filed a special leave petition in the Supreme Court earlier this year, challenging the High Court's order. It argued that despite Kumar's acquittals, he was deemed unsuitable for public employment in the District Magistrate's report citing his failure to uphold the standards of probity and transparency, including concealing relevant facts.
It also referenced guidelines issued by the Appointments Department in 1958, along with provisions from the U.P. Higher Judicial Service Rules, 1975 for character verifications. Sections 2 and 3 of the 1958 government orders vests power to the competent authority to assess the suitability of any candidate on the basis of conduct, integrity and antecedents.
The state has also repeatedly mentioned the case of his father, an additional judge who was suspended for charges of corruption in 1990, in various petitions filed against Kumar's appointment.
Kumar, it contended, concealed facts in online application for the judiciary examination, claiming that he didn't mention about one of the cases that were pending trial at the time of him filling the form.
On 9 May, the Supreme Court put a stay on the High Court's directive in yet another setback for the Kanpur resident whose ordeal is yet to end even after two decades.
Sources close to Kumar told ThePrint that he didn't wish to speak.
Also Read: Beyond the noise, cases of 'outdated' Official Secrets Act marred by legal limbo, high pendency
More questions than answers
It was the summer of June 2002 when Kumar, 27, found himself at the center of a high-stake investigation in two FIRs. He was at his home when investigators led by military intelligence and the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) knocked at the doors of his Kanpur residence.
The charges: passing sensitive information, including the names of military units and officers posted at the Kanpur cantonment to a Pakistani intelligence operative. In return, he was said to have received Rs 18,000.
According to the investigators, Kumar had maintained contact through a PCO landline. International calls were received on this number, which the prosecution claimed were from Pakistan. Among the evidence submitted were service maps and documents allegedly linked to the Kanpur cantonment—which the prosecution claimed were classified.
But as the trial unfolded, the court scrutinised the 'confidential documents' and found them lacking in credibility. The maps, the judge noted, had no unique markings, no scale, and appeared to be the kind that could be found in any atlas or even on Google Maps. The prosecution failed to prove not only the sensitive nature of the documents but also Kumar's direct connection to any Pakistani intelligence operative.
The defence also pointed out that no military personnel faced any consequences of the supposed leak, if truly sensitive material had been compromised. Further questions arose on the investigation itself, particularly regarding the origin of the PCO telephone bill allegedly linked to Kumar.
In the end, what began as an accusation of espionage ended with more questions than answers and the case that fell apart under the weight of its own shaky evidence. Kumar was acquitted of all charges in March 2014.
The state did file an appeal against his acquittal, but it was dismissed by the High Court in 2018. 'I do not find any illegality, infirmity or perversity in the impugned judgement and order. The view taken by the trial Court is just and does not suffer from any misreading of any material evidence on record,' the judge had noted.
'Subjective belief'
Between his acquittal and the state's pending appeal, Kumar cleared the U.P. Higher Judicial Service. His name was part of the merit list sent to the state government for appointment recommendations. But the shadow of the state's pending appeal against his acquittal loomed large. No appointment letter came his way.
As the process stalled, the district magistrate sought further military intelligence on Kumar and the administrative commandment here too listed out that he was on radar for espionage and the allegations of corruption on his father. The DM then informed the court in 2019 that Kumar was found unsuitable.
The HC then asked the state to place the matter of appointment in front of the Governor, who deemed him unfit for the appointment and his candidature was cancelled in 2019.
But the story didn't end there. In a significant turn last year, the HC observed that the government's continued objection was based not on evidence, but on a lingering suspicion that Kumar might have spied for a foreign country. This belief, it noted, wasn't supported by any fresh or compelling material that hadn't already been weighed during the criminal trial.
'It uses high sounding words and expressions to describe a purely subjective belief,' the HC had said, noting the absence of any objective or verifiable basis for the government's stance.
Meanwhile, the case will be next heard by the apex court in the second week of July.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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