Court quashes complaint against BJP councillor

: A Special court here has dismissed a complaint seeking directions to lodge a case against a BJP councillor and six officials of the South Delhi Municipal Corporation for allegedly cheating Rs. 4 crore from the old age pension scheme of the civic body.

Special Judge Poonam Chaudhry dismissed the complaint against Pawan Singh Rathee, councillor from Madhu Vihar, and the civic body officials, saying there was no prior sanction from the competent authority for their prosecution.

“In a complaint case filed against a public servant where there was no previous sanction, the magistrate cannot order investigation by invoking Section 156 (3) of the CrPC,’’ the judge said.

The judge also dismissed the contention of the complainant that sanction was not required at the stage of exercise of power under Section 156 (3) of the Code, saying that it was without merit. “If the law requires sanction for proceedings against public servants, the court cannot entertain a complaint against them without a valid sanction for their prosecution,” the judge said.

‘Fake documents’

The complainant had alleged that about 700 pension holders, who were getting stipends under the ‘Old Age Destitute’ scheme, were not entitled to the same. Mr. Rathee and the civic body officials, in connivance with the pension holders, had allegedly fabricated documents certifying that they were eligible for the scheme. The complainant had further alleged that Mr. Rathee, who was the chairman of Najafgarh Zone from 2014 to 2015, was pocketing half of the pension amounts.