Sex CD Case: Supreme Court Stays Trial Against Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel

The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on CBI's plea to transfer the trial of the 2017 'sex CD' case. It also stayed the ongoing criminal trial in the case involving Chhattisgarh Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel as an accused. Supreme Court stayed the ongoing trial after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for CBI, submitted that witnesses in the case were feeling threatened by the state government and chief minister.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and justices S A Bobde and S A Nazeer also issued a notice to Baghel on a plea of probe agency CBI seeking transfer of the criminal case out of Chhattisgarh on grounds including that the chief minister has been allegedly threatening the witnesses in the case.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the CBI said that two prosecution witnesses have lodged complaints with the probe agency that they have been threatened at the behest of accused for giving statement against the chief minister in the case.

The CBI had registered a case against Baghel in September 2018, then Chhattisgarh Congress president on a complaint that he had allegedly tried to frame the then state PWD minister and BJP leader Rajesh Munat in the fake sex CD case. Munat had also lodged a complaint against Baghel and journalist Vinod Verma at the Civil Lines police station in Raipur for allegedly tarnishing his image through through the "fake CD".

On September 24, 2018, CBI filed a charge sheet in the special court here in the sex CD case, naming Baghel and some others as accused. The Special CBI Judge, Raipur had then remanded Baghel to 14 days judicial custody. He was later released on bail.