Delhi High Court puts on hold non-bailable warrant issued against ACB Chief M.K Meena

Delhi, September 15 : The Delhi High Court, on Tuesday, stayed till September 23, the non-bailable warrant issued against Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) Chief, M.K Meena. The warrant had been issued on September 11 by a Commission of Inquiry (CoI) set up by the AAP government to probe into the CNG Fitness Scam.
A division bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Jayant Nath, while passing the order, issued notice to the AAP government and the CoI, seeking their responses on the Centre’s plea which challenges the constitutionality and establishment of the commission.
The commission was established on August 11 by the AAP government to look into allegations raised in the award of contract to M/S ESP India Ltd to conduct CNG fitness testing on vehicles.
The Ministry of Home Affairs, in its petition has opposed the September 11 order of the CoI which had not only issued a non-bailable warrant against Anti-Corruption Branch Chief, Mukesh Kumar Meena, but had also directed attachment of 30 per cent of his salary till records pertaining to the inquiry conducted by the ACB into the scam were presented to the probing panel.
Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Sanjay Jain, assisted by Central government Standing Counsel, Kirtiman Singh, argued that the September 11 order was passed “without jurisdiction and not in accordance with law.” They said there was an urgency in the matter as Meena had been ordered to produce the records before the commission today itself. “My primary contention is whether the GNCT of Delhi is an appropriate government under the Inquiry Act to constitute a Commission of Inquiry under the Commission of Inquiry Act, 1952,” Jain was quoted as saying.
The Bench listed the matter with two other writ petitions that also challenged the setting up of the commission and are scheduled to be heard on September 23.