New Delhi: Arguments on framing of charges in the 2002 additional spectrum allocation scam case, in which CBI had chargesheeted former Telecom Secretary Shyamal Ghosh and three telecom firms, would commence from February 19, a special court said today.
Special CBI Judge O P Saini fixed the matter for arguments observing that it was an "important case" and the court would hear it on a daily basis after charges are framed.
"This is an important case and after framing of charges, I intend to take the case on day-to-day hearing. Whatever documents defence counsel needs, should be provided to them," the court said as it put up the case for arguments on framing of charges on February 19.
During the hearing, one of the defence counsels, senior advocate Ramesh Gupta, sought time till first week of March to go through the additional documents supplied to them by CBI.
The court, however, declined the request saying "such long duration can not be given."
Senior Public Prosecutor K K Goel informed the court that whatever documents CBI has relied upon has been given to the defence counsel and if any additional documents are needed, the agency was ready to provide them.
The court was earlier informed that Supreme Court had quashed the order summoning Bharti Cellular Ltd CMD Sunil Bharti Mittal and Essar Group promoter Ravi Ruia as accused in the case.
Hearing in the case was virtually stalled since April 26, 2013 interim order of the apex court which had said that proceedings against Mittal and Ruia, who had challenged trial court's summoning order, will remain "postponed" until further orders.
The apex court had cleared the decks for Mittal and Ruia by setting aside the order summoning them, observing that the principle of 'alter ego' has been wrongly applied by the trial judge in seeking presence of Mittal and Ruia as accused.
Besides Mittal, Ruia and Shyamal Ghosh, the special court had also summoned Canada-based NRI Asim Ghosh, who was then a managing director of accused firm Hutchison Max Telecom Pvt Ltd, as accused. Mittal, Ruia and Asim Ghosh were not named as accused in the CBI charge sheet.
CBI had filed the charge sheet in the case on December 21, 2012 against Shyamal Ghosh and three telecom firms -- Bharti Cellular Ltd, Hutchison Max Telecom Pvt Ltd (now known as Vodafone India Ltd) and Sterling Cellular Ltd (now called Vodafone Mobile Service Ltd).
The agency had chargesheeted them as accused in the case relating to the Department of Telecommunications allocating additional spectrum, which had allegedly resulted in a loss of Rs 846 crore to the exchequer.
In the 57-page charge sheet, CBI has booked Shyamal Ghosh and the three firms for the offences of criminal conspiracy (120-B) of the IPC and under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act. PTI MNL ABA
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SUBBARAO-LOAN
Ex-RBI Guv Subbarao against loan waiver schemes
Hyderabad: Former Reserve Bank Governor D Subbarao today said that he is not in favour of farm loan waiver schemes being implemented by the governments of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
"My response is that it (farm loan waiver) is not a good thing. You have to understand the farmers' plight. You have to understand their economics. But loan waiver has negative consequences," Subbarao said in an interactive session with students at the ICFAI campus here.
He said the money that both the governments are spending on loan waiver schemes belong to tax payers of this country.
"You are going to give loan waiver to farmers. Whose money is that? Whose money is going to support the farmers to write off their loans? It is my money and your money, tax payers' money throughout the country. We are part of this country and it is borne by all of us," he added.
As part of the poll promises, N Chandrababu Naidu and K Chnadrasekhar Rao, chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana respectively started implementing farm loan waiver schemes in their respective states.
While it costs over Rs 17,000 crore for Telangana exchequer, the scheme is expected to dent AP government?s coffers by tens of thousands of crore.
"One thing in public policy is that losers do not know that they are losing. Winners know that they are winning. Farmers know that they are getting the money and they are benefited. The 100 crore people of this country who bear the cost of loan waiver do not know (that they are paying the money).
"It is not a good thing because people who do not know that they are paying the cost of this loan waiver scheme are actually paying it," he said.
Recently AP Government said it has credited Rs 4,664 crore into farmers' accounts towards loan waiver scheme while its counterpart in Telangana sanctioned Rs 4,250 crore towards the scheme.
