Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, June 23: A local court issued summons to Secretary Tourism, Shailender Kumar and editor of a local daily for recording statement in a defamation case filed against president of People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Mehbooba Mufti, by National Conference (NC) General Secretary and Rural Development Minister Ali Mohammad Sagar in 2004.
The court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Srinagar presided by Virender Singh Bhou issued summons to Secretary Tourism and sought particulars from Sagar’s counsel about Bashir Ahmad Khan, then Superintendent of Srinagar city (north) for issuing summons to him as also summons to editor of a local daily for recording their statements. “Summons to Prosecution Witness (the then DC Shalinder Kumar) be sent directly to him”, the court directed and put the trial of the case on July 8.
The prosecution witnesses include Sharief-u-Din, then additional Deputy Commissioner Baramulla, Assistant Returning Officer, Khawja Bashir, former Deputy Commissioner Budgam and Returning officer Srinagar Parliamentary constituency, Irshad Ahmad, then Magistrate on duty and Advocate Shabir Ahmad.
Among them, statements of Sharief-u-Din, Khawja Bashir and Irshad Ahmad have already been recorded by the court. Besides, Sagar’s witnesses in the case are editors of a few local English and Urdu dailies.
Sagar, who was chief polling agent of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah during the 2004 Lok Sabha polls, had filed a defamation suit against the PDP president, who had accused him of rigging elections by indulging in booth capturing.
Sagar has alleged she (Mehbooba) had damaged his image by defamatory statements that he (Sagar) was carrying bogus voters from booth to booth in favour of Omar during the parliamentary elections and a case( FIR no. 22) stands registered in this regard in Police Station Khanyar. Sagar also alleged that Mehbooba defamed him publically that he was responsible for burning Nawakadal bridge in 1986.
At one point of time, Mehbooba had approached the High Court, seeking dismissal of the suit. However, the court dismissed the PDP chief’s petition and directed the trial court to go ahead with the proceedings.
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