Hindujas seek quashing of chargesheet in Bofors case

The court declined to stay trial proceedings by special court till it decided on the petition after CBI counsel N Natrajan said there was a Supreme Court direction for day-to-day trial in the case.

Natrajan, however, said he would inform the trial court about the filing of the petition by Hindujas on the next date of hearing fixed for May 10.

Earlier, the two sides argued over the stay of the trial before the special court but after Natrajan’s statement, senior advocate Ram Jethmalani, appearing for Hindujas, said he was

not asking for a formal stay order.

Jethmalani said the CBI Had not sought any prior approval from the CVC before filing the chargesheet against the three brothers — S P Hinduja, G P Hinduja and P P Hinduja — on October 9, 2000.

He said the Supreme Court in the Vineet Narain’s petition in Jain-hawala case had held that prior sanction of CVC for filing chargesheets in all corruption cases was mandatory.

‘‘The apex court had laid down this provision to prevent injustice to innocent persons and at the same time to prevent escape of the guilty,’’ Jethmalani contended.