The Rajasthan High Court on Wedenesday stayed the suspension of Jaipur Municipal Corporation-Heritage Mayor Munesh Gurjar stating that without conducting a preliminary enquiry her suspension order could not have been passed.
On a petition filed by the mayor, a single bench judge Inderjeet Singh said the order of suspension of Mayor Gurjar could not have been passed without conducting preliminary enquiry, her Lawyer Vigyan Shah told The Statesman when contacted.
The next date of the hearing will be on September 18, 2023. The Mayor will resume her office at the earliest, the Lawyer said.
In the argument, the HC was told that the suspension was made on the basis of a press note released by Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) and the allegation was that the mayor’s husband was caught red handed at the Mayor’s residence accepting a bribe of Rs. 2 lakh in the presence of the Mayor. However the FIR report lodged by ACB specifically states that the complanent could not deliver the bribe amount at mayor’s residence and the amount was given to one person namely Narayan Singh as per the allegation in the FIR. Therefore the ground of suspension is completely false and contrary to the FIR record. Thus, without conducting preliminary enquiry such suspension was per se illegal by violation of section 39 of the Rajasthan Municipal Act 2009.
Government Advocate M S Singhvi tried his best to prove that the bribe and six files related to issue of land deed were found from the Mayor’s residence when the ACB raided their house in presence of the Mayor’s husband Sushil Gurjar.
It is worth mentioning that the ACB arrested Sushil, hubby of JMC-H Mayor Munesh, and two of his agents for taking a bribe of Rs.2 lakh for issuing a land deed to a client on August 4. Next day on August 5, the Government of Rajasthan suspended the Mayor under section 39(6) of The Rajasthan Nagar Palika Act , 2009.