Supreme Court rejects plea on alleged bribery scam

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday described as derogatory, contemptuous and scandalous the petition seeking a probe by a special investigation team, headed by former Chief Justice of India into the allegations of bribery in the ‘medical scam’ against highest judicial functionaries.

The court said, “We find that filing of such petitions and the zest, with which it is pursued, has brought the entire system in the last few days to unrest. An effort was made to create ripples in this court; serious and unwanted shadow of doubt has been created for no good reason whatsoever by way of filing the petition which was wholly scandalous and ought not to have been filed in such a method and manner. ”

A three-judge Bench of Justices R.K. Agrawal, Arun Mishra and A.M. Khanwilkar dismissed the PIL filed by advocate Ms. Kamini Jaiswal and refrained from initiating contempt proceedings against her. She had sought a probe into a medical institute matter that could allegedly involve corruption at higher levels of the judiciary. 

SC deprecates forum hunting 
The petition by Ms. Kamini Jaiswal sought an independent investigation in a medical institute matter that could allegedly involve corruption at high levels of the judiciary including the SC judges.

The second petition by advocate Prashant Bhushan also sought investigation by an independent body in the said corruption case, in which the CBI had already registered FIR. 

The bench said “We do not find reflection of any name of the judge of this court in the FIR. There is no question of registering any FIR against any sitting judge of the HC or of this court. We deprecate the conduct of forum hunting (choosing a bench) that too involving senior lawyer. Such conduct tantamounts to unethical, unwarranted and nothing but forum hunting.”