New Delhi, July 9 (IANS) The Delhi High Court on Thursday reserved its verdict on a plea filed by former Congress MLA Rajendra Bharti seeking a stay on his conviction in the 1998 Rural Development Bank fraud case, and said it would pronounce its decision on Friday.

A single-judge Bench of Justice Manoj Jain reserved the order after hearing arguments on Bharti’s application seeking suspension of his conviction awarded by a Special MP-MLA court in New Delhi.

Bharti has sought a stay on his conviction, contending that it led to his disqualification as a member of the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly and triggered the by-election process for the Datia Assembly constituency.

The Congress leader was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment by the Special MP/MLA court in the decades-old cooperative bank fraud case.

Though he was granted bail, the conviction remained in force, resulting in his immediate disqualification under Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, read with Article 191(1)(e) of the Constitution and the Supreme Court’s 2013 judgment in the Lily Thomas case.

Bharti has also questioned the continuation of the Datia Assembly by-election process while his appeal against conviction is pending. The case concerns alleged financial irregularities in a fixed deposit at the District Cooperative Agriculture and Rural Development Bank in Datia in 1998.

According to the prosecution, Bharti and others conspired to manipulate the fixed deposit and continued drawing higher interest even after its maturity.

Following the trial, the Special MP/MLA court convicted Bharti and co-accused Raghuvir Sharan Prajapati under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code, including Sections 120B, 420, 467, 468, 471 and 409, and sentenced Bharti to three years’ imprisonment along with a fine of Rs 1 lakh.

His conviction led to the termination of his membership of the Madhya Pradesh Assembly, and the Datia Assembly seat was declared vacant by the Assembly Secretariat.

Earlier, the Delhi High Court had issued notices on Bharti’s challenge to his conviction and on his plea relating to the Datia by-election but had declined to grant interim relief. The matter was subsequently adjourned on multiple occasions.

While deferring the hearing, the Delhi High Court stayed his arrest but did not suspend the conviction, resulting in his disqualification remaining in force.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has already notified the Datia Assembly by-election.

The last date for filing nominations is July 13; scrutiny of nomination papers will take place on July 14; the last date for withdrawal of nominations is July 16; polling is scheduled for July 30; and counting of votes will be held on August 3.

The bypoll was necessitated following Bharti’s disqualification from the Assembly after his conviction.

–IANS

pds/dan