A Division Bench of Chhattisgarh High Court has stayed criminal proceedings on FIR registered against IPS officer Gurjinder Pal Singh in the year 2021 for blackmailing a Durg resident. The High Court took note of the fact that the complainant lodged a complaint against Singh after a long gap of six years while also considering the fact that permission needs to be taken under section 197 of the CrPC before prosecuting the public servants, which was not taken. IPS officer Singh had filed the petition seeking directives for quashing the FIR registered against him.

 

Notably, on the complaint of Durg resident Kamal Sen, Supela Police, in the year 2021, had registered an FIR against GP Singh. Sen had alleged that he was in a business dispute with builder Singhania and GP Singh had issued him threats demanding Rs 20 lakh from him. Singh had moved court against the FIR on which a hearing before the Division Bench of Judge Rajani Dubey and Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha was held on Wednesday.

 

The court ordered to list the case in the week commencing 8th of July and stayed further criminal proceedings in pursuant to the impugned FIR against Singh till the next date of hearing. It is worth mentioning that GP Singh has previously served as Inspector General in Durg Police Range and during the Congress regime, offences against Singh were registered following which he was sent to jail and dismissed from the services. Singh had also moved the Central Administrative Tribunal against his compulsory superannuation and the state government was recently directed to quash all the cases pending against Singh and reinstate him within four weeks.