Jind case: Congress opposes judicial probe into allegations against Geeta Bhukkal

Tribune News Service

Geetanjali Gayatri

Chandigarh, December 18

The Opposition today pushed for dropping the recommendation for a probe by a sitting HC judge into allegations of “shielding” the Jind school principal accused of sexually harassing students against its MLA Geeta Bhukkal, after which CM Manohar Lal Khattar agreed to defer the decision till tomorrow.

MLA refutes allegations

• Congress MLA Geeta Bhukkal protested vociferously and said that in 2005, the accused principal of Jind school was not in a government job and she did not have a house in Jhajjar in 2011
• She sought Assembly Speaker Gian Chand Gupta’s permission to place her statement on record

The CM, during zero hour in the Vidhan Sabha’s winter session, announced that the government would defer writing to the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court for naming a sitting judge to hold the probe. He said the matter would be discussed in the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) tomorrow before taking a final call.

Earlier, Leader of the Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda raised the issue of the “prestige” of the House and said no judge had ever conducted an inquiry into matters pertaining to the Legislature while adding that the allegations levelled by Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala against Congress MLA and former Education Minister Geeta Bhukkal were “false”.

Chautala, on the first day of the session, had alleged that the principal was “shielded” by Bhukkal in 2005 and 2011 when a panchayat was held at her place in Jhajjar to work out a compromise by which a DDR against the principal was not converted into an FIR.

Bhukkal today protested vociferously and said in 2005, the accused principal was not in a government job and she did not have a house in Jhajjar in 2011. She sought Speaker Gian Chand Gupta’s permission to place her statement on record. Hooda said the accused joined the government service in 2008, proving thereby that the allegations by the Deputy CM were false.

The Speaker said the matter to look into the allegations and counter-allegations was discussed at length on the first day and the House had decided in favour of a probe by a sitting judge of the HC.

The CM said since the House had already decided, the government would write a letter to the Chief Justice for naming a judge to head the probe. “If the Chief Justice rejects it, we can review our decision,” he said. The Congress got support from the JJP MLA Ram Kumar Gautam who said he was not in favour of bringing the court into a matter of the Legislature.

Hooda also favoured an in-House probe even as Chautala stood by his allegations while urging the Speaker to make an amendment to his statement and said the year he cited as 2011 was actually 2012. The arguments of both sides were lost in the din after which the House was adjourned for 15 minutes.

Later, as proceedings for the day ended, Congress Chief Whip BB Batra cited Article 105 of the Constitution during Zero Hour and CM Manohar Lal Khattar deferred the decision on sending a reference for a probe by an HC judge into the case.

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