BeyondHeadlines Correspondent
New Delhi: A trial court has rejected bail to five accused in the 2G case. Those who have not granted bail include Unitech’s Managing Director Sanjay Chandra, Swan Telecom’s Director Vinod Goenka, Reliance ADA Group Managing Director Gautam Doshi, Senior Vice President Hari Nair and President Surendra Pipara.
The bail applications were without merit, said Special Judge OP Saini. This is not a fit case for bail; there are serious allegations against the accused. “The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has expressed apprehension that the accused may flee or temper with evidence, and these apprehensions cannot be dismissed as they are too far-fetched at this stage. Moreover, there are incriminating evidences, which currently cannot be discussed, present on record against accused,” he explained.
However, insistent senior counsel Mukul Rohatgi said that bail ought to have been granted in this case. “Vinod Goenka has fully cooperated with investigation. The denial should not be on general allegations. We will move the Delhi High Court as soon as possible,” he said adding that the hype surrounding the case may have gone against the client.
All accused have been remanded to 14-day judicial custody and will have to go to Tihar Jail. The trial will now be heard on daily basis. The second chargesheet likely to be filed on April 25.
Former Telecom Minister A. Raja and eight others, including former Telecom Secretary Siddharth Behura, and three telecom companies were on April 2 indicted in the 2G spectrum allocation scam by the CBI, which pegged the loss to the exchequer at Rs 30,984 crore.
