2G: HC asks CBI to provide records to Raja, others

The same direction was issued by Justice Najmi Waziri in relation to a case arising out of the probe in 2G scam and in which Essar Group promoters Ravi Kant Ruia and Anshuman Ruia and six others were acquitted by the trial court.

The court gave the CBI two weeks’ time to provide the digitised records and six weeks to Raja and others to file their replies to the agency’s appeals and listed the two matters for further hearing on February 7.

The agency had on March 20 moved the high court against the trial court’s December 21, 2017 decision acquitting Raja, Kanimozhi and others in the 2G spectrum case. Besides Raja and Kanimozhi, the special court had acquitted 15 others, including former Telecom Secretary Siddharth Behura, Raja’s erstwhile private secretary R K Chandolia, Swan Telecom promoters Shahid Usman Balwa and Vinod Goenka, Unitech Ltd MD Sanjay Chandra and three top executives of Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (RADAG) — Gautam Doshi, Surendra Pipara and Hari Nair, in the CBI case.

The CBI had alleged before the special court that there was a loss of Rs 30,984 crore to the exchequer in allocation of licences for the 2G spectrum which were scrapped by the top court on February 2, 2012. Special Judge O P Saini, however, had held that the prosecution had “miserably failed” to prove the charges.

The special court, which was set up on March 14, 2011 for hearing 2G cases exclusively, had on December 21 also acquitted the Ruias and six others — promoters of Loop Telecom Ltd IP Khaitan and Kiran Khaitan, Essar Group Director (Strategy and Planning) Vikash Saraf and three telecom firms - Loop Telecom, Loop Mobile India and Essar Tele Holding — in a separate case arising out of the 2G scam probe.

On April 18, the CBI challenged the acquittal of Ruias and the six others.

The CBI had named them in its charge sheet on December 12, 2011, alleging they had cheated the Department of Telecommunication (DoT) by using Loop Telecom as a “front” to secure 2G licences in 2008 in violation of Clause 8 of the Unified Access Service License (UASL) Guidelines.

In the main 2G case, Raja, Kanimozhi and the 15 others were tried under provisions of the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act dealing with offences of criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery, using as genuine fake documents, abusing official position, criminal misconduct by public servant and taking bribe.