TRAI, law ministry views on 2G unsolicited, CBI tells court

TRAI, law ministry views on 2G unsolicited, CBI tells court

New Delhi,  The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), probing the 2G spectrum allocation scam, Thursday rejected reports of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and the law ministry and told a Delhi court that their views on the case were unsolicited.

CBI Special Public Prosecutor U.U. Lalit told the special CBI court, presided over by Judge O.P. Saini, that the law ministry’s report to department of telecommunications (DoT) defining the term “associates” is unsolicited. The report implied that some of the telecom licence applicants were not associated with each other.

The CBI refused to bring the TRAI and the law ministry’s report on record and told the court that if the it wanted it to be placed before it then it should pass an order.
Read the rest of this entry »


TRAI report on spectrum value submitted in CBI court

TRAI report on spectrum value submitted in CBI court

New Delhi, The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Friday placed the report of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on the 2G spectrum’s value before its special court hearing the airwaves’ allocation scam.

The report, which said it was not possible to predict with certainty the precise value of 2G spectrum that would have emerged in auction between 2001-08, was submitted to Special CBI Judge O.P. Saini.

The submission was in response to a petition filed by several of the accused including former communication minister A. Raja and DB Realty’s Shahid Balwa.

The agency has already submitted the report before the Supreme Court earlier this week. Placed before a bench of Justices G.S. Singhvi and H.L. Dattu, the report said it was a “tricky” exercise to estimate the annual value of spectrum for eight years.
Read the rest of this entry »


Accused says CBI tampering with 2G evidence

Accused says CBI tampering with 2G evidence

New Delhi,  The Supreme Court was told by an accused in the 2G case Tuesday that the Central Bureau of Investigation was tampering with evidence by asking the telecom regulator to revisit its opinion that the precise value of the spectrum, if it had been auctioned, could not be arrived at.

Senior counsel Ram Jethmalani told an apex court bench of Justice G.S. Singhvi and Justice H.L. Dattu that “your (CBI) intended correspondence so that TRAI (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) should change its opinion amounts to tampering with evidence – a habit we (his client) are totally free of”.

Jethmalani was arguing on the bail plea of Unitech’s Sanjay Chandra. The court was hearing a plea by Chandra and Vinod Goenka of Swan Telecom challenging the Delhi High Court’s May 23 verdict rejecting their bail applications.
Read the rest of this entry »


2G case: Can’t deny us bail, two accused tell apex court

2G case: Can’t deny us bail, two accused tell apex court

New Delhi,  The Supreme Court was told Monday that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has said that there was no loss to the exchequer in the allocation of 2G spectrum and the accused in judicial custody were entitled to bail.

The observation came during the arguments on bail for Sanjay Chandra of Unitech and Vinod Goenka of DB Reality, who are in judicial custody for their alleged involvement in the 2G scandal.

Senior counsel Ram Jethmalani, appearing for accused, told the bench of Justice G.S. Singhvi and Justice H.L. Dattu that his clients were being denied bail and suffering incarceration only on the ground that the public exchequer suffered loss to the tune of Rs.30,000 crore.

The TRAI has given its opinion in response to a query by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on the pricing issue in the allocation of 2G spectrum.
Read the rest of this entry »