COURT RESERVES VERDICT ON COMPLAINT AGAINST JASWANT

It is alleged that opium was served at a function he organised on
October 31

JODHPUR: A special court here on Saturday reserved its verdict whether
investigation should be conducted into a complaint filed against
senior BJP leader Jaswant Singh that opium was allegedly served at a
function he had organised on Wednesday.

Initial hearing

The court concluded the initial hearing of the application and put the
matter for decision whether the case was fit for investigation under
section 156/3 of the Cr.PC or not after hearing the arguments of the
counsel for the complainant.

The complaint, under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances
(NDPS) Act 1985, against the former External Affairs Minister and nine
other BJP leaders was filed on Friday for allegedly using opium and
provoking others publicly during a social function hosted by Mr. Singh
at his ancestral village Jasol in Barmer district of Rajasthan.

"Conduct inglorious"

Malam Singh Choudhary, counsel for the complainant Om Prakash Vishnoi,
said it was contended before the court that on October 31, Mr. Singh
hosted a social function and he brought opium illegally and prepared
its dose and served to nine other people publicly.

"Since all the ten accused are associated with the supreme institution
of legislature that makes the laws, this conduct is inglorious. People
do follow the leaders. On one hand, the Act restricts taking opium
publicly and its glorification in social functions and on the other
these public representatives crossed all legal as well as ethical
limits," Mr. Choudhary told the court.

"Rare case"

It was also contended before the court that it was a rare case in
which public representative and law makers performed the role of "law
breakers" publicly and the court, therefore, may send this case to
police station for registering the case and making
investigation.

The complainant also named Member of Parliament Raghuveer Singh
Kaushal, Kailash Megwal, former president of BJP Rajasthan L.K.
Chaturvedi, Cabinet ministers of Rajasthan Narpat Singh Razvi,
Ghanshyam Tiwadi, Madan Dilavar, and MP Jain along with two MLAs
Jogeshwar Garg and Shankar Singh Rajpurohit besides Mr. Singh.