New Delhi:
The Delhi High Court has granted bail to DMK MP Kanimozhi in the 2G spectrum case. Along with her, the High Court also granted bail to four other accused - Kalaignar TV chief Sharath Kumar, Cineyug Films' Karim Morani, Kusegaon Fruits and Vegetables Pvt Ltd directors Asif Balwa and Rajiv B. Agarwal.
The court, though, reserved its order on bail to former Telecom Secretary Siddharth Behura.
Ms Kanimozhi and the five others had moved the High Court seeking early hearing of their bail pleas. The court had accepted their applications and advanced the hearing, taking it up on Friday instead of December 1, as was originally scheduled.
The High Court had adjourned proceedings till today since the arguments by the lawyers for the accused could not conclude on Friday.
The Supreme Court had, last week, granted bail to five corporate executives co-accused in the case - Unitech Wireless' former MD Sanjay Chandra, Swan Telecom's Director Vinod Goenka and Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group's executives Hari Nair, Gautam Doshi and Surendra Pipara.
This was the first instance of accused persons being granted bail in the 2G case.
Ms Kanimozhi, who is the daughter of DMK chief M Karunanidhi, has been lodged in Tihar Jail since May 20. She has been accused of helping former Telecom Minister A Raja accept a Rs. 214-crore kickback from a company which was allegedly shown undue favour by him. Like Kanimozhi, Mr Raja is from the DMK and is in jail. Mr Karunanidhi heads the DMK; the southern party is a senior member of the UPA coalition at the Centre.
Ms Kanimozhi faces charges ranging from criminal conspiracy to cause criminal breach of trust, forgery to accepting bribe and abetting bribery. Though it's an indirect charge, the one under section 409 of IPC carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment; the substantive charges against her under the Prevention of Corruption Act carry a maximum sentence of five years.
Ms Kanimozhi and the five other accused had challenged the Special CBI Court's November 3 order denying them bail. The DMK MP had stated in her application to the Delhi High Court that keeping her in custody for some more days would be a violation of her fundamental rights. She contended she should be granted bail as even the investigating agency was not opposing her plea.
This was Ms Kanimozhi's fifth attempt to get bail. Earlier, she had been denied bail twice by the trial court, once by the High Court and once by the Supreme Court.
Rejecting her bail on November 3, Judge OP Saini, who is handling the trial for the telecom scam, said that her lawyers had erred in suggesting that as a woman she was entitled legally to leniency - they had cited a section of the law that allows for bail for women, under-16s and sick people. Judge Saini stressed that Kanimozhi's privileged background and her status as an MP does not make her an average woman prisoner.
Her lawyers have repeatedly said that while she was politically close to Mr Raja, she did not benefit in any way from his alleged manipulation of policy to benefit the firms he has been accused of criminally conspiring with.
Earlier this month, the High Court had issued notice to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) seeking its response to the bail applications of the six accused. The CBI has told the court that it is not opposing their bail pleas but it wants that the bail conditions should be stringent. It has also said that the accused should be asked to deposit their passports in court.
In the High Court, her lawyers cited the Supreme Court's order granting bail to five corporate executives and sought bail on grounds of parity. They also argued that since all relevant documents had already been collected by the CBI, there was no scope for any tampering with evidence.
In its decision, the Supreme Court had said, "We are conscious of the fact that the accused are charged with economic offences of huge magnitude. We are also conscious of the fact that the offences alleged, if proved, may jeopardise the economy of the country. At the same time, we cannot lose sight of the fact that the investigating agency has already completed the investigation and the chargesheet is already filed. Therefore their presence in the custody may not be necessary for further investigation. We are of the view that the appellants are entitled to the grant of bail pending trial on stringent conditions in order to allay the apprehension expressed by the CBI."
The telecom swindle is estimated to be India's largest scam. The CBI has said in court that it cost the country Rs. 30,000 crore. The government's auditor places the price tag at Rs. 1.76 lakh crore.
The trial in 2G spectrum scam case began in a Delhi court earlier this month. Fourteen people including former Telecom Minister A Raja, the alleged mastermind of the scam, have been named accused in the case. So far, five of them have secured bail. Nine others are still in jail. A Raja is the only one who has not applied for bail - he says he will leave jail only after he proves in court that the scam he is being held accountable for is fictitious.
The CBI is handling the case against Mr Raja and 13 others. The Supreme Court is monitoring the CBI's investigation; a special court headed by Judge OP Saini is handling the trial.
Charges against M Kanimozhi
Criminal conspiracy to cause criminal breach of trust by a public servant
Criminal conspiracy under section 120-B
Cheating under section 420
Forgery under sections 468 and 471
Booked under the Prevention of Corruption Act
Charges against Siddharth Behura
Criminal breach of trust by a public servant under section 409
Criminal conspiracy under section 120-B
Cheating under section 420
Forgery under sections 468 and 471
Booked under the Prevention of Corruption Act for accepting illegal gratification
Charges against Sharath Kumar, Asif Balwa Rajiv Agarwal, Karim Morani
Criminal conspiracy to cause criminal breach of trust by a public servant
Criminal conspiracy under section 120-B
Cheating under section 420
Forgery under sections 468 and 471
Fabrication of evidence under section 193
Booked under the Prevention of Corruption Act
Charges against Sharath Kumar, Asif Balwa Rajiv Agarwal, Karim Morani
Criminal conspiracy to cause criminal breach of trust by a public servant
Criminal conspiracy under section 120-B
Cheating under section 420
Forgery under sections 468 and 471
Fabrication of evidence under section 193
Booked under the Prevention of Corruption Act