Retired Allahabad HC Judge turns out CBI key prosecution witness in medical college bribery scandal

Justice Virendra Kumar - II retired from Allahabad High Court has recorded his statement for CBI as a prosecution witness in the medical college bribery scandal.

Justice Virendra Kumar - II, a former Allahabad High Court Judge who was part of a division bench which granted a favourable order to the institute involved in the scam in August 2017, has emerged as a key prosecution witness for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in its investigation into the medical college bribery scandal.

CBI has recorded his statement to buttress its corruption charges against his then-brother judge, Justice (retired) SN Shukla, as reported by Economic Times. 

Justice Virendra is witness number 12 in the list of 105 witnesses. As per the CBI's charge sheet, Justice Kumar has deposed that he had objected to the listing of a petition filed by the institute on August 25, 2017, after it was withdrawn from the Supreme Court and listed before a division bench of Allahabad HC.

He has asked the advocate of the Prasad Education Trust, "When all matters of admission in medical colleges were being examined by the Supreme Court, then why the petition has not been pressed." Prasad Education Trust's college was debarred by the Medical Council of India for substandard facilities. Justice Virendra had observed that since the college was debarred by the MCI it cannot remain on the list of colleges participating in counselling. However, Justice Shukla agreed to hear the matter considering that under Article 226, a high court has the same power as Supreme Court has under Article 32, stated the CBI's charge sheet.

"Justice Virendra Kumar II has no association/connivance with Justice Shukla," added charge sheet.

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