Aircel-Maxis case: Marans challenge 2G court's jurisdiction

NEW DELHI: Former Telecom Minister Dayanidhi Maran and his brother Kalanithi Maran today filed separate pleas challenging the jurisdiction of special 2G court to try the Aircel-Maxis deal case in which they have been summoned as accused along with six others.

The move by Maran brothers came a month after the Supreme Court on February 9 had disallowed them from approaching Delhi High Court against the special court's order summoning them as accused in the case arising out of probe into the 2G spectrum allocation scam.

The apex court had said that the Marans could state before the special court that Aircel-Maxis case was not part of the 2G spectrum scam and cannot be heard by the designated judge who has been nominated to exclusively deal with cases arising out of the 2G scam.

Marans had submitted before the apex court that their right under the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) and Article 226 to approach the High Court cannot be curtailed and they would establish that their case stood on different footing than that of 2G cases.

The Maran brothers today appeared before Special CBI Judge O P Saini and filed pleas challenging the jurisdiction of the special court to try the case.

The court issued notice to the CBI on the pleas and fixed the matter for hearing on August 3.

"Accused number one and accused number two (Dayanidhi and Kalanithi) have filed separate applications challenging the jurisdiction of court to try the case," the court said.

The CBI also filed its reply to the bail petitions of the Marans which was fixed for arguments on August 3, the next date of hearing.

During the hearing, senior public prosecutor K K Goel told the court that fresh summons should be issued against the four other accused, Malaysian business tycoon T Ananda Krishnan, Malaysian national Augustus Ralph Marshall and two accused firms, as the summons issued against them earlier could not be served upon them.

The prosecutor said that they need atleast three months time to serve the summons to these accused. "We are helpless. We need time. This will be done through diplomatic channel," the prosecutor said.