HC cites lack of proof, junks sedition, extortion FIRs against IPS officer

RAIPUR: Chhattisgarh HC Wednesday quashed all three FIRs filed against 1994-batch IPS officer G P Singh in connection with sedition, extortion and disproportionate assets charges.

A division bench noted that the FIRs seem to have been filed solely to harass him. Singh was an ADGP when the FIRs were registered. According to Singh’s counsel, among the key reasons for quashing the FIR was that the person from whose custody a 1kg gold bar was seized, was not made an accused under the Prevention of Corruption Act, and the scooter where it was found wasn’t registered in Singh’s name.

Similarly, in the extortion case, the FIR was registered after a gap of six years and the complainant was not known to Singh, said the counsel. And in the sedition matter, the original documents were never produced in the court and from the videography conducted by the anti-corruption bureau, it was not proved that Singh was ‘tearing a paper that had seditious content’, Singh’s counsel added.

The court noted the absence of evidence in the FIRs, which “appeared to have been filed solely for harassment purposes”, leading to their dismissal.