BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court has dismissed petitions filed by Wipro founder Azim Premji, his wife and two others questioning summons issued by an Additional City Civil and Sessions Court in January. Justice John Michael Cunha dismissed the petitions filed by Premji, his wife, Pagalthivarthi Srinivasan and Regional Director of Ministry of Corporate Affairs M R Bhat.
The trial court had issued summons on January 27 against the four based on a private complaint filed by Chennai-based company India Awake for Transparency, about allegations of illegally transferring crores of rupees worth of assets from three companies into a private trust and newly formed company. It was alleged in the complaint that Premji, his wife and Srinivasan were entrusted with the dominion over properties and assets of three companies as directors.
They were holding assets of these three companies of a total worth Rs 31,342 crore in fiduciary capacity, without having any financial interest or ownership therein, the complaint said. Based on the private complaint alleging that the accused had committed offences punishable under Sections 409, 34 read with 120B IPC and Section 13(1)(d) read with Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, the trial court issued summons to Premji and others. They have challenged it before the high court. In the HC, the counsel for the accused argued that the allegations made in the complaints, even if they are taken at their face value and accepted in their entirety, do not prima facie constitute any offences or make out a case against accused 1 to 4.