Latest news with #Delkar
Hindustan Times
a day ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
SC backs HC's order in lawmaker's suicide
The Supreme Court on Monday affirmed the Bombay high court's decision to quash a first information report (FIR) in the abetment to suicide case related to former parliamentarian Mohanbhai S Delkar, bringing final relief to nine accused, including Praful Khoda Patel, administrator of Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu, and Lakshadweep. SC backs HC's order in lawmaker's suicide A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Bhushan R Gavai and justice K Vinod Chandran pronounced the judgment. Reading out the operative part of the judgment, Justice Chandran said the top court has confirmed the high court's September 2022 order and dismissed the appeal filed by Delkar's son, Abhinav. The FIR, lodged at Mumbai's Marine Drive police station on March 9, 2021, had invoked sections 306 (abetment of suicide), 506 (criminal intimidation), 389 (putting a person in fear of accusation in order to commit extortion) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the erstwhile IPC, along with relevant provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. It alleged that Delkar, a prominent tribal leader from the Dhodia Patel community and a seven-term MP from Dadra & Nagar Haveli, was subjected to sustained harassment by the local administration to wrest control of an educational institution he ran and to deter him from contesting the next election. Delkar, 58, was found dead on February 22, 2021, in a hotel room on Marine Drive in Mumbai. A suicide note and minutes of a parliamentary privileges committee were recovered from the spot. His son, Abhinav Delkar, recorded a statement that was treated as the FIR. Nine persons, including Patel, were named as accused in the FIR. Quashing the FIR in 2022, the high court held that the allegations, at best, reflected the deceased's impressions of humiliation and ill-treatment and were not backed by material showing any specific, proximate acts of instigation or intentional aid -- elements necessary to make out abetment under Section 306 IPC. The high court also noted material placed by the petitioners to show that Delkar was accorded due protocol at public functions, and found no prima facie instance of harassment rising to the level of a criminal offence. The high court added that it was a fit case for quashing 'to prevent abuse of law.' The high court, while quashing the case, accepted the arguments of the accused that Delkar was never disrespected at public functions and that proper protocols were observed in keeping with his stature. It ruled that the allegations of humiliation and harassment were 'impressions carried out by the deceased' and that the FIR lacked any prima facie evidence of a 'positive act' required to establish abetment under Section 306 of IPC. The nine persons named in the FIR included Praful Patel and some officials and police officers in the Dadra and Nagar Haveli administration. Mohan Delkar, a prominent tribal leader, first entered Parliament in 1989 and represented Dadra and Nagar Haveli six times consecutively until 2009. After a brief interlude, he returned as an Independent MP in 2019, defeating BJP's Natu Patel by 9,001 votes. His wife currently represents the constituency in the Lok Sabha, having joined the Bharatiya Janata Party with their son Abhinav in 2024.
United News of India
2 days ago
- Politics
- United News of India
SC upholds Bombay HC order quashing FIR in MP Mohan Delkar suicide case
New Delhi, Aug 18 (UNI) The Supreme Court today upheld the Bombay High Court's decision to quash the FIR alleging abetment to suicide and extortion in connection with the death of Dadra and Nagar Haveli MP Mohanbhai Sanjibhai Delkar in 2021. A bench headed by Chief Justice of India BR Gavai and comprising Justices K Vinod Chandran and NV Anjaria pronounced the order, stating: 'High Court order confirmed and dismissed the SLP.' The verdict had been reserved on August 4. The Court was hearing the plea filed by Abhinav Mohan Delkar, son of the deceased MP, challenging the Bombay High Court order that quashed the FIR against Dadra and Nagar Haveli Administrator Praful Khoda Patel, Collector Sandeep Kumar Singh, Police Superintendent Sharad Darade, and other officials accused of abetting Delkar's suicide. On September 8, 2022, a Bombay High Court bench of Justices Prasanna B. Varale and Shrikant D. Kulkarni had allowed a batch of writ petitions filed by the accused, holding that the allegations were unsustainable. Delkar, a seven-time MP, was found dead on February 22, 2021, at a hotel in Mumbai. His son lodged an FIR accusing the officials of harassment, humiliation, and conspiracy to force his father to commit suicide, invoking Sections 306 (abetment to suicide), 506 (criminal intimidation), 389 (putting person in fear of accusation of offence), 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC, along with provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. The FIR alleged that Delkar faced systematic harassment to seize control of the college he managed and to prevent him from contesting future elections, besides being publicly humiliated as he belonged to a Scheduled Tribe. However, the High Court found no substantive evidence to support these claims. It held that the allegations were based largely on Delkar's perception of being ill-treated. The Court observed that no material showed attempts by the accused to take over Delkar's educational institution, and in fact, Delkar had successfully contested elections as an independent candidate. Quoting from its order, the High Court had said: 'If both these alleged objects are not substantially established and it is only in the form of certain allegations and an impression of the deceased, then asking the Petitioners to undergo the rigors of criminal prosecution is nothing but an abuse of process of law.' The Court also ruled that the FIR lacked concrete evidence of conspiracy under Section 120-B IPC, noting that there were only bare allegations without incidents showing the accused acted in concert. Relying on precedents including Madan Mohan Singh v. State of Gujarat and State of Haryana v. Bhajan Lal, the Court emphasized that a positive act is necessary to constitute 'abetment' under Section 306 IPC, which was absent in this case. Accordingly, the Bombay High Court quashed the FIR against nine accused persons, a decision now affirmed by the Supreme Court. UNI SNG AAB
Indian Express
2 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
MP Mohan Delkar's death: Supreme Court upholds quashing of FIR against UT administrator Praful Patel, others
The Supreme Court Monday upheld a Bombay High Court order quashing the FIR against Dadra and Nagar Haveli administrator Praful Khoda Patel and others in connection with the death of MP Mohan Delkar on February 22, 2021. The bench of Chief Justice of India B R Gavai and Justices K Vinod Chandran and N V Anjaria, which heard the matter, said it was confirming the September 8, 2022, order of the high court and dismissing the appeal against it. The detailed order is awaited. Delkar, 58, a seven-term parliamentarian from Dadra and Nagar Haveli (DNH), was found dead in a room at a hotel in Mumbai's Marine Drive. On March 9, 2021, the police registered a First Information Report (FIR) on charges of abetment to suicide and other relevant provisions after Delkar's family members lodged a complaint on behalf of his son Abhinav. The complaint was filed against Patel, then DNH district collector Sandeep Kumar Singh, then superintendent of police Sharad Darade, then deputy collector Apurva Sharma, sub-divisional officer Manasvi Jain, police inspector (Silvassa) Manoj Patel, DNH administrative department official Rohit Yadav, political leader Fattesingh Chauhan, and then talathi of Silvassa Dilip Patel for allegedly having abetted the suicide by 'misusing their posts and powers and intentionally conspiring and planning against Delkar'. The FIR had alleged that the MP was under pressure for a year prior to his death and that the DNH administration was harassing him to gain control over his institute, SSR College of Pharmacy and Management, and prevented him from contesting further elections. In September 2022, however, the high court held, '…we find merit in petition and substance in submissions by petitioners and it is a fit case for the court to exercise its power under section 482 of Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) to prevent an abuse of process of law. The FIR filed by Abhinav Delkar is thus quashed and set aside.' The accused were booked for offences punishable under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 306 (abetment to suicide), 506 (criminal intimidation), and 120B (criminal conspiracy), along with provisions of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
SC affirms quashing of FIR against administrator in parliamentarian suicide case
The Supreme Court on Monday affirmed the Bombay high court's decision to quash a first information report (FIR) in the abetment to suicide case related to parliamentarian Mohanbhai S Delkar, bringing final relief to nine accused, including Praful Khoda Patel, administrator of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu, and Lakshadweep. The Supreme Court confirmed the Bombay high court's September 2022 order. (HT PHOTO) A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Bhushan R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran pronounced the judgment. Reading out the operative part of the judgment, Justice Chandran said the top court has confirmed the high court's September 2022 order and dismissed the appeal filed by Delkar's son, Abhinav. The FIR, lodged at Mumbai's Marine Drive police station on March 9, 2021, invoked sections 306 (abetment of suicide), 506 (criminal intimidation), 389 (putting a person in fear of accusation to commit extortion) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code, along with the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. It alleged that Delkar, a prominent tribal leader from the Dhodia Patel community and a seven-term Member of Parliament from Dadra and Nagar Haveli, was subjected to sustained harassment by the local administration to wrest control of an educational institution he ran and to deter him from contesting the next election. Delkar, 58, was found dead on February 22, 2021, in a hotel room on Marine Drive in Mumbai. A suicide note and minutes of a parliamentary privileges committee were recovered from the spot. His son, Abhinav Delkar, recorded a statement that was treated as the FIR. Nine persons, including Patel, were named as accused in the FIR. Quashing the FIR in 2022, the high court held that the allegations, at best, reflected Mohanbhai S Delkar's impressions of humiliation and ill-treatment and were not backed by material showing any specific, proximate acts of instigation or intentional aid, elements necessary to make out abetment under Section 306 IPC. The high court noted material placed by the petitioners to show that Delkar was accorded due protocol at public functions, and found no prima facie instance of harassment rising to the level of a criminal offence. The high court added that it was a fit case for quashing 'to prevent abuse of law.' The high court, while quashing the case, accepted the arguments of the accused that Delkar was never disrespected at public functions and that proper protocols were observed in keeping with his stature. It ruled that the allegations of humiliation and harassment were 'impressions carried out by the deceased' and that the FIR lacked any prima facie evidence of a 'positive act' required to establish abetment under Section 306 of IPC. The nine persons named in the FIR included Praful Patel and some officials and police officers in the Dadra and Nagar Haveli administration. Mohan Delkar, a prominent tribal leader, first entered Parliament in 1989 and represented Dadra and Nagar Haveli six times consecutively until 2009. After a brief interlude, he returned as an Independent lawmaker in 2019, defeating Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s Natu Patel by 9,001 votes. His wife represents the constituency in the Lok Sabha, having joined the BJP with their son Abhinav in 2024.
