NEW DELHI: The Delhi HC on Thursday heard a petition by Mukesh Kumar, a record keeper (ahlmad) from Rouse Avenue Court, who has been accused of demanding bribes in return for facilitating bail for certain accused persons.
His counsel told the Court that confidential documents linked to the investigation are being leaked to the media, potentially endangering his right to a fair trial.
Senior advocate Mohit Mathur, representing Kumar, expressed serious concern over what he described as unauthorised dissemination of sensitive investigation material.
He told the bench of Justice Amit Sharma that documents signed by the investigating officer, which were not even available to the defence at this stage, had found their way to news channels and were now being aired publicly.
Mathur argued that these disclosures were not only illegal but compromised Kumar’s right to justice and personal liberty.
“What fairness can be expected when material signed by the investigating officer is already being circulated across media platforms? They have given all this to the press,” he said, contending that this was a deliberate effort to prejudice the ongoing legal proceedings.
The High Court granted permission for Kumar’s legal team to place additional material on record to substantiate the claims regarding media leaks.
Appearing for the State, Additional Standing Counsel Sanjay Bhandari requested time to file a formal reply. The matter has now been listed for further hearing on June 2.
The case stems from a FIR lodged on May 16 by the Anti-Corruption Branch, which accused Kumar of accepting bribes from individuals in exchange for enabling favourable bail outcomes. In the wake of the FIR, the Delhi High Court had also transferred the Special Judge under whom Kumar worked, from Rouse Avenue Court to Rohini Court. Kumar has strongly denied the allegations, asserting that he has been deliberately targeted. Through his counsel, he claimed that the bribery case is part of a calculated effort by certain officials to discredit the judge for issuing rulings they found unfavourable. He further alleged that the investigation is being led by the same ACB officer against whom he had earlier lodged a complaint.
Following the registration of the criminal case, Kumar approached the HC seeking anticipatory bail.