Search warrant application hearing adjourned till Apr 13

Mumbai, Apr 7 (UNI) A sessions court today adjourned the hearing of an application filed by an officer of anti-corruption bureau (ACB) seeking a search warrant against his collegue who refused to hand over the documents related to the Lohar brothers' case in connection with the 2001 MPSC scam.

The matter came up before Additional Sessions Judge S P Mahajan this afternoon, who adjourned the matter till April 13 following a request from special public prosecutor Vijay Thorat appearing for the ACB, as he required time to file his say against the reply filed by the other ACB officer.

ACP Vishnu Shinde of ACB had filed an application before the court on March 24, seeking search warrant against Assistant Commissoner of Police Sudhakar Pujari, who is probing the MPSC scam.

Shinde, in his complaint, said Pujari did not hand over the documents related to Lohar brothers' case, which was earlier incorporated in the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) scam case.

Later, the Lohar brothers' case was separated from the MPSC case no. 33 of 2002 and registered in a separate CR no. seven, which is now probing ACP Shinde.

However, ACP Pujari, in his reply, informed the court that they had been given the copies of the document and the original document cannot be given to him, as the matter is still pending in the court concerning the MPSC scam.

The MPSC scam came to light in 2001 when it was found that in 1998-99, a racket was operating within Maharashtra Public Service Commission, favouring the selection of candidates in MPSC examinations.

The three Lohar brothers - Nitin, Manoj and Sunil, all deputy superintendents of police selected throuth MPSC, are accused of clearing the MPSC examination by manipulating the results in 1997.

They were dismissed this year after MPSC secretary lodged a supplementary complaint, making them accused in the scam.

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