NEW DELHI: The special court hearing the 2G case on Saturday reserved its order on the bail plea of DMK MP M K Kanimozhi and co-accused Sharad Kumar till May 14, the day after the Tamil Nadu Assembly election results are announced.
Judge O P Saini also directed the two to be present at all hearings till the bail pleas are decided.
He also dismissed their petition requesting personal exemption on the plea that they need to visit Chennai on May 9 and 10 in connection with an appearance before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on May 12 and 13. This means the DMK supremo’s daughter will not be in Chennai during the counting and result announcement process.
Describing Kanimozhi as the ‘controlling mind’ and ‘guiding hands’ of Kalaignar TV, Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) U U Lalit strongly opposed her bail plea. Lalit also emphasised that Kanimozhi had a close relationship with arrested former telecom minister A Raja, and not her co-accused Sharad Kumar, managing director and part-owner of Kalaignar TV.
Kalaignar TV is in the focus of the CBI charge that Rs 200 crore was earned as a payoff for doling out a 2G licence and spectrum to an ineligible company, Swan Telecom, promoted by their co-accused in the case, Shahid Balwa and Vivek Goenka.
The ED has summoned Kumar and Kanimozhi, both co-owners of Kalaignar TV, to explain the company’s financial transactions, especially pertaining to the Rs 200 crore transferred to it from Cineyug, a company in which the D B Group had a 49 per cent stake.