HC reserves order on Hindujas' pleas

HC reserves order on Hindujas' pleas
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

NEW DELHI, FEB 26: The Delhi High Court today reserved its order on the plea of the three Hinduja brothers to go out of the country after they offered to waive off their right to challenge any future extradition procedings against them in UK or Switzerland, where they live, to ensure their presence during the Rs. 64 crore Bofors payoff case trial.

Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for London-based SP Hinduja and G P Hinduja and Geneva-based P P Hinduja, told Justice S K Aggarwal they were ready to furnish affidavits in the trial court that they would "waive off" their right to challenge any extradition procedings against them in those countries to ensure their presence in the trial court here.

Justice Aggarwal reserved the judgement after hearing the counsel for Hindujas and the CBI for over an hour on the petitions of the accused challenging the Special Judge's order denying them permission to leave the country.

CBI, which opposed Hindujas' plea seeking permission to leave the country, told the Court that it was the discretion of the trial court as to how it should ensure the presence of accused during the trial.

Sibal contended that there was no ground for the Special Judge's apprehension that the accused would not come back to face trial as they had appeared on their own before the trial court without even receiving the summons.

However, CBI counsel N Natarajan reminded the Court that Win Chadha, another accused in the case, had not been allowed by the Supreme Court to go abroad for medical treatment.