The Delhi High Court has reserved its decision on former Congress MLA Rajendra Bharti’s plea to halt his conviction in the 1998 Rural Development Bank fraud case. Bharti sought a stay on his conviction, which led to his disqualification as a Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly member. The conviction stemmed from alleged financial irregularities in a cooperative bank fraud case dating back to 1998.
Bharti’s appeal for suspension of his conviction was heard by Justice Manoj Jain, who reserved the order after considering Bharti’s arguments. The conviction resulted in Bharti’s immediate disqualification under relevant legal provisions, triggering the by-election process for the Datia Assembly constituency. The case involved Bharti and others allegedly manipulating a fixed deposit and continuing to receive inflated interest post-maturity.
The Special MP/MLA court had sentenced Bharti to three years in prison and imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh. Despite being granted bail, the conviction remained in effect, leading to Bharti’s expulsion from the Madhya Pradesh Assembly. The Delhi High Court had earlier declined to provide interim relief to Bharti, and the Election Commission of India has already announced the Datia Assembly by-election.
