The CBI has taken over a probe into 26 identical PILs filed in the Allahabad High Court on behalf of dead or non-existent petitioners between 2003 and 2005.
The case was earlier registered at the Cant police station in Prayagraj in 2017, following the High Court’s directive on a petition alleging fraud and forgery. The matter was earlier brought before the court’s Litigation Committee.
A preliminary enquiry conducted by the SP concerned found that all the petitions were identical and they were filed through three advocates, two of whom could not be traced. The petitioners had already died or they did not exist. Despite the facts that the earlier writ petitions were dismissed, fresh ones were filed without any reasonable explanation.
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These petitions objected to certain appointments, alleged unauthorised courses and some other irregularities related to the Allahabad Agricultural Institute.
The police tracked down one lawyer, Gulab Chandra Singh, whose version related to the petitioners was not found satisfactory. Raising suspicion, the FIR also pointed out that the institution’s empanelled lawyers had got huge remunerations for proceedings related to the petitions. It said they did not take up the issue of identical petitions in the court.