HC reserves order on plea for Vadra probe

The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court on Thursday reserved judgment on a writ petition seeking an inquiry by the Prime Minister's Office into allegations against Robert Vadra that he had got interest-free loans and purchased properties from DLF Ltd at throwaway prices.

The bench comprising Justices Uma Nath Singh and V K Dixit reserved the order after hearing arguments from the petitioner's counsel Asok Pande and Additional Solicitor General Mohan Parasharan.

In her petition, PIL activist Nutan Thakur had requested for the court's intervention in taking a decision on the petitioner's representation, pending with the Prime Minister's Office, for an inquiry into Vadra's financial transactions with DLF Ltd. On October 11, the court directed the PMO to submit a reply.

Thakur's counsel Asok Pande said Dheeraj Gupta, joint secretary at PMO, submitted an affidavit in reply to the court's direction on Tuesday, stating that the allegations against Vadra were false, vexatious and baseless.

The joint secretary also said the petitioner was seeking directions on unsubstantiated bases.

Gupta added that the PMO was erroneously made a party in the petition and the office cannot be used for ordering of inquiries against private citizens, based purely on newspaper reports and disputed facts. He prayed that the petition be dismissed with costs.

Thakur said the affidavit carries various comments related to the allegations made in the petition, but it has not mentioned a word about the steps taken on her representation pending with the PMO.

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