New Delhi: A Delhi court on Friday directed
the CBI to produce before it the documents related to Bofors
payoff scam seized by it in 1997 from Win Chadha, who was also
an accused in the case.
The criminal proceedings against Chadha were abated
after he died in 2001.
Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Vinod Yadav asked the
CBI to produce the documents before it in first week of May
after the agency said that those documents were lying at their
head quarters.
The court was hearing the plea filed by Win Chadha's
son Hersh Washesher Chadha seeking release of the documents on
the ground that there was no criminal proceeding pending in
the case against any accused person after the court accepted
CBI's plea to withdraw the case against Italian businessman
Ottavio Quattrocchi.
Advocate Ajay Agrawal, who had earlier opposed the
CBI's move seeking withdrawal of prosecution against the sole
surviving accused in the bofors scam Ottavio Quattrocchi, said
that if the court allows release of the documents, then the
CBI should keep a copy of those documents.
"If this court allows to handover the sought documents
to the applicant HW Chadha, xerox copies duly authenticated
should be kept by the CBI," Agrawal said while opposing the
release of the documents.
Win Chadha had died on October 24, 2001, following
which the criminal proceedings against him had abated.
"It is therefore, most respectfully prayed that this
court may kindly be pleased to direct CBI to release the
documents/articles mentioned in the seizure memo dated May
1,1997, to the applicant or the applicant's authorised
representative," Chadha's son had said in his application
filed before the CMM on April 7.
"The officials of CBI seized a number of documents and
articles from the office and residence of late Washesher
Nath Chadha (Win Chadha) on May 1, 1997, by way of executing
number of seizure memos in which the particulars of the
documents/articles are described.
"These documents/articles belong to late Washesher
Nath Chadha and his other family members including the
applicant, which have no concern with the case of CBI," he had
said.
PTI
First Published: Friday, April 15, 2011, 23:31