Scam 8212; Khandelwal denies statement

Mehta had alleged before the special court that the two statements of Khandelwal, as recorded by the CBI on June 1 amd June 15, 1993 were not produced before the court and were also suppressed from the accused Mehta and others.

Mehta8217;s counsel, Mahesh Jethmalani, today started the crossexamination of Khandelwal. Khandelwal did depose that on November 4, 1991, Harshad Mehta came to the office of Growmore Research in Delhi and directed him to withdraw Rs 45 lakhs from a bank. He, however, denied that he had told the CBI that on the same day November 4, 1991, Mehta told him that he was to have a meeting with the then prime minister, Narsimha Rao, on that day.

In fact, Jethmalani asked him if his statement had been recorded by an officer called Bhatnagar, to which he replied in the affirmative. Jethmalani then called upon the CBI counsel to produce any statement of the approver recorded by Bhatnagar on June 15, 1993. CBI counsel told the court that there was no statement recorded by Bhatnagar.

Khandelwal also denied that he had told the CBI that the cash from the first cheque of Rs 25 lakhs signed by him and encashed by Amol Kalia, was given to him. He said the cash had been given by Kalia to Harshad Mehta.

Khandelwal also said he did not recollect whether he went with Kalia to the ANZGrindlays Bank in Delhi to encash the other cheque of Rs 20 lakhs. When asked specifically if he told the CBI that he had gone to the bank with Kalia, he denied it.

Khandelwal further denied that he had told the CBI that he went along with Harshad Mehta and Sunil Mittal son of Sakpal Mittal, MP to the residence of Sitaram Kesri, then treasurer of the Congress party, on the same day.