A Delhi court today awarded a 4-year jail sentence to former Haryana chief minister Om Prakash Chautala in a disproportionate assets case. Apart from the jail term, a fine of Rupees 50 lakh also has been imposed by the court. Besides, some of his properties will also be attached. A BI court awarded the sentence today after his conviction a few days ago.
87-year-old Om Prakash Chautala was accused of amassing assets disproportionate to his legitimate income, between 1993 and 2006. On Thursday 26th May 2022, counsels of the Central Bureau of Investigation as well as Chautala put their arguments before the special judge Vikas Dhull. Chautala was convicted on 21st May. The court observed that the accused had failed to satisfactorily account for such dis-proportionality by proving his source of income or means by way of which, he acquired assets during this period.
आय से अधिक संपत्ति मामले में हरियाणा के पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री ओम प्रकाश चौटाला को 4 साल की सजा, 50 लाख का जुर्माना लगाया गया #OmPrakashChautala #Haryana @Mimansa_Zee @rajurajjee#LiveUpdates – https://t.co/asaJAvlGSV pic.twitter.com/bhdVzb2vbY
— Zee News (@ZeeNews) May 27, 2022
Om Prakash Chautala’s counsel had requested the court to grant him minimum punishment. He cited the medical ailment and old age of Chautala for this. On the other hand, CBI counsel had argued that the accused was not having clean antecedents since it was the second case in which he has been convicted, and therefore maximum punishment should be given to him so that it would send a message to society. The CBI had registered the case in 2006 and alleged that Om Prakash Chautala had earned 189 times more money than his income.
On April 3, 2006, it was alleged that former Haryana CM Om Prakash Chautala and others had amassed immovable assets along with his family members and others. After the investigation, a charge sheet was filed against him in the case on March 26, 2010. There were about 257 prosecution witnesses in the case. Chautala’s sons, Abhay Singh and Ajay Singh Chautala are also accused in this case. Former Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala was released from Tihar Jail in July 2021 after serving his sentence in the teachers’ recruitment scam case.
