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Delhi

CWG street lights scam: Court to announce sentence today

Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Special Judge Brijesh Garg fixed Wednesday for delivering his order on quantum of sentence after the prosecution and defence counsel concluded their arguments.
The court on Monday convicted the four officials of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) — the then superintending engineer D K Sugan, then executive engineer O P Mahala, then accountant Raju V and then tender clerk Gurcharan Singh.

It also held guilty Sweka Power Tech Engineers Pvt Ltd and its director J P Singh and managing director T P Singh.

The CBI public prosecutor Praneet Sharma told <g data-gr-id="47">court</g> that the lenient view could not be taken against the convicts, as they were involved in a corruption case related to the CWG. Prosecutor Sharma requested the court to award maximum punishment to convicts for their misdeeds.

However, defence counsel of convicts sought leniency in sentence contending that they were having clean antecedents and had already spent around 11 months in jail during the trial. Sugan’s counsel told the court that his client is 52 years old and a diabetic patient. He has to take care of his 78-year-old paralysed father and other members of <g data-gr-id="44">family</g>.

While Mahala told <g data-gr-id="37">court</g> that he has a clean record in the department, adding no enquiry against her is pending in the MCD.

Mahala has also received appreciation award in a <g data-gr-id="35">slaughter house</g> project, the defence counsel said.
Advocate P K Dubey, appearing for 53-year-old T P Singh and 48-year-old J P Singh, claimed that his clients suffered loss in the project and requested to release them by awarding the sentence that he had already undergone during judicial custody. This is the first case relating to the CWG irregularities case which has been decided by the court.

According to the CBI charge-sheet filed on July 28, 2011, the accused entered into a criminal conspiracy for upgrading street lights in view of the Commonwealth Games in October 2010 and awarded it to a private firm by manipulating tender documents.

This caused undue pecuniary loss of over Rs 1.42 crore to the government, it said.

The CBI also charge-sheeted Mehul Karnik, an employee of Philips India Pvt Ltd as an accused in the case, but he was later discharged. The CBI registered a case on charges of cheating, criminal conspiracy and other related charges under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Four MCD officials were held guilty of criminal conspiracy and cheating under the Indian Penal Code. The company and its directors were convicted for offences dealing with criminal conspiracy, cheating 
and forgery.

CBI for strict sentence for convicts
The CBI on Tuesday sought stringent punishment for seven convicts, including four MCD officials, in a Delhi court which said it would on Wednesday pronounce the sentence for conspiring to cause a loss of Rs 1.4 crore to the exchequer in the 2010 Commonwealth Games street lighting scam. Special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Judge Brijesh Garg heard arguments of the CBI prosecutor and counsel for the convicts on <g data-gr-id="76">quantum</g> of <g data-gr-id="77">sentence</g> and fixed the case for Wednesday to pronounce the order. “Arguments on sentence heard. Defence counsel sought time to submit relevant <g data-gr-id="75">judgments</g>. 
Put up for pronouncement of quantum of sentence tomorrow,” the court said. This is the first case relating to the CWG scam which has been decided by the court. During the arguments, CBI prosecutor Praneet Sharma contended that the convicts had caused a loss of over Rs 1.42 crore to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and maximum punishment of seven years should be awarded to them. Citing Supreme Court <g data-gr-id="70">judgments</g>, Sharma argued that a lenient view should not be taken by the court towards convicts especially in corruption cases. 
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