Hearing against former MLA deferred for failure to appear before court
BJP leader Sangeet Som's hearing for charges of slapping a returning officer and damaging a CCTV camera during an election was deferred to January 17. The investigation is still ongoing.
Hearing against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former MLA Sangeet Som was deferred, and the court of Addl Civil Judge court 1 has given January 17 as the next date of hearing.
The crime branch had submitted a chargesheet against the former MLA on charges of slapping a returning officer and damaging CCTV camera inside the polling booth during the state assembly election in February 2022.
The hearing of the case against Som was listed in the court on Wednesday but he didn’t appear, and the court issued another notice and fixed January 17 as the new date of the hearing.
The court’s e-portal shows that the summon issued for the first date of hearing in the case was November 17 and thereafter the second date was given on Jan 3.
SP (crime) Anit Kumar said that investigation of the case is still underway against those who were involved while a chargesheet was filed against Som.
The then SHO of Sardhana police station Laxman Verma had lodged the case against Som under sections 332, 353, 504, 506, 392, 171-F and 188 of the Indian Penal Code.
The detail in the FIR says that SHO received information about disturbance during polling on Feb 10, 2022 at booth no 131 of primary school at Salawa in Sardhana constituency. When he reached there, returning officer at booth Ashwini Sharma said that Sangeet Som arrived at the booth with his supporters and complained about slow polling. Sharma declined the charges and said that recording of the whole process was being carried out. Som, in a fit of rage, slapped him and damaged the CCTV camera.
The matter was immediately reported to the sector magistrate concerned and senior officials.
