Kripashankar Singh may get key party post after court relief

MUMBAI : A day after a special court discharged former city Congress chief Kripashankar Singh in a multi-crore disproportionate assets case, all eyes are on how party chief Rahul Gandhi rehabilitates him.

Though Kripashankar may not be reappointed as city Congress head, he may be given a significant organizational assignment. After the economic offences wing (EOW) initiated criminal proceedings against him, his detractors believed that it was the end of his political career, however, they were proved wrong following the court’s verdict.

“During his recent interaction with Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, Kripashankar briefed them on the state of affairs in the city Congress and how senior Congress leaders were out to ruin his political career. Ever since the criminal proceedings were initiated against him, Kripashankar told the then Congress chief minister as to how he was being framed to settle political scores, but his pleas fell on deaf ears,” said a Congress leader.

“Singh had specifically told the Congress high command on the dubious role played by his own colleagues, but then he was asked to come out clean in the criminal case against him. Now that he has been discharged, Singh is expecting a respectful rehabilitation,” the leader added.

A senior IPS officer said the EOW’s credibility is at stake following its inept handling of the sensitive case, involving Singh who was also a minister of state for home for over four years. “There appears to be a goof-up at all levels. Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis must step in set the EOW in order. He must fix responsibility on the investigating officer as to how he lost the case. It appears that there was inadequate homework while initiating criminal proceedings against Kripashankar,’’ he said.

In the chargesheet filed in 2005, the EOW had submitted that Kripashankar and his family owned assets worth Rs 19 crore, which were 20% more than known sources of income, while Kripashankar’s assets were 11% more than his known sources of income. Under the provisions of law, the EOW approached then assembly Speaker Dilip Walse-Patil to seek his permission for launching prosecution against Kripashankar. Walse-Patil refused to accept EOW calculations on the valuation of Singh’s properties. The EOW approached the Speaker again, urging him to reconsider his verdict. Although Walse-Patil rejected the proposal, EOW suppressed the Speaker’s opinion and went ahead with the proceedings.


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