'No delay in seeking HC verdict copy'

The Delhi Police have denied applying late for Delhi high court verdict's certified copy in the hit-and-run case involving Sanjeev Nanda, grandson of former Naval chief SM Nanda. HT reports.

The Delhi Police have denied applying late for Delhi high court verdict's certified copy in the hit-and-run case involving Sanjeev Nanda, grandson of former Naval chief SM Nanda.

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The Supreme Court, hearing the Delhi Police appeal against 2009 HC verdict altering Sanjeev's conviction from harsher offence to a lenient one, had on October 11 raised questions over this delay. A bench headed by Justice Deepak Verma had sought an explanation from the Delhi Police on why the police applied for a certified copy after the limitation period to challenge the HC verdict had expired.

In response to the query, the Delhi Police filed an affidavit before SC, claiming the police counsel had applied for a certified copy of the verdict seven days after it was delivered on July 20, 2009. The counsel had also recommended filing of an appeal against the HC judgment.

However, by the time the department took a decision to challenge the HC judgment, three months had elapsed and it did not "want to spend time" locating the original application. Therefore, it applied afresh for a certified copy. The delay, it added, was neither "deliberate" nor "wanton."

"It was decided to make a fresh application to obtain a certified copy of the impugned order instead of attempting to trace the certified copy which would have been prepared earlier on the additional public prosecutor's application. This decision was taken as it was felt that following up the earlier application to get the certified copy would be more time consuming than making a fresh application," the affidavit read.

Delhi Police have filed detailed affidavit defending its belated action in filing the appeal, as Nanda's counsel Ram Jethmalani had during the October 11 hearing, sought dismissal of the appeal on the ground, there was a delay of 51 days in filing the appeal.