New Delhi/Cuttack: The Supreme Court Tuesday suspended the sentence of Congress MLA Mohammed Moquim in a corruption case.
A bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Dipankar Datta issued notice to the Odisha government on the appeal filed by the Cuttack-Barabati MLA challenging the Orissa High Court’s decision.
“Issue notice. Having heard the senior counsel for the parties and taking into consideration all the attending circumstances, the sentence of the petitioner is ordered to be suspended,” the bench said.
The high court April 10 dismissed the appeal of Moquim who challenged the order of a vigilance court that sentenced him to three years of rigorous imprisonment and slapped a fine of Rs 50,000 in connection with a corruption case.
Special judge, vigilance, Bhubaneswar, September 29, 2022, convicted Moquim in a corruption case.
The vigilance department, in a statement, said Moquim, as the managing director of Metro Builders Pvt Ltd in collusion with an IAS officer and others obtained a pecuniary advantage in favour of the real estate firm in the guise of loans meant for rural poor from the state-run Odisha Rural Housing & Development Corporation Ltd (ORHDC).
PTI