The Aam Aadmi party leader Sanjay Singh today took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the acquittal of all the accused in the 2G spectrum scam case by a special court, saying it was "apparent that some foul play, some deal" has happened.
Speaking to reporters here, Singh said, "It is clear that Modi is supporting the corrupt."
"If the CBI failed to prove the charges against the accused then it is apparent that some foul play, some deal has happened due to which the accused are going unpunished in all the cases whether it is 2G case, Vyapam case, and Mallya," he said.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan said the special court's verdict was "shocking" and a "shame".
In a series of tweets, Bhushan, who had argued for the PIL filed by NGO Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL), on which the Supreme Court had ordered a CBI probe, said "the acquittal of all 2G scam accused by trial court is grossly wrong and sends a signal that influential people are not
accountable in this country's judicial system."
"There was considerable evidence of benami licences, fixing of the 1st Come 1st served system & also bribes in this. Shame (sic)," he said.
A special court also criticised the Department of Telecommunication (DoT) over its submission that it was cheated by promoters of Essar Group and Loop Telecom Ltd by fraudulently obtaining 2G spectrum licences, saying the DoT was playing "victim".
Questioning the conduct of the DoT, it said if the department felt that the spirit of clause 8 of 2005 Unified Access Service Licence (UASL) guidelines was being violated by means of "excessive debt funding" by one licensee company to another, then it was free to amend its guidelines.
Tamil Nadu's main opposition DMK today hailed as 'historic' a Delhi court's verdict acquitting its leaders A Raja and Kanimozhi in the 2G spectrum cases even as its arch-rival, the ruling AIADMK, said it was a fit case for appeal.
As the news about the CBI special court's verdict came, DMK cadres broke into celebrations across Tamil Nadu, bursting firecrackers and distributing sweets.
"A historic verdict has been delivered," DMK working president M K Stalin told reporters. Expressing relief and joy, Kanimozhi, a Rajya Sabha member and daughter of DMK chief M Karunanidhi, said "I have been waiting these last six years for this day."
Dubbing her last six years as "harrowing and excruciating", she said in a statement that as the 2G episode was behind her she will do all she can to strengthen the party and work for the people of Tamil Nadu.
Enforcement Directorate will appeal against the judgement of the Special Court.
The Congress should not be elated over the 2G scam verdict as the matter of prosecuting "criminal conspirators is still open," Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev
Chandrasekhar said today.
He said he was not "disappointed" with the acquittal of former Telecom minister A Raja and DMK Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi.
"Also Congress should not be so much elated, because the matter of prosecuting criminal conspirators is still open as the investigating agencies, CBI and ED, have already decided to move courts," the MP told PTI.
Senior Congress leader P C Chacko today said the special court verdict acquitting former telecom minister A Raja and DMK leader Kanimozhi in the 2G spectrum scam case underlined the stand taken by the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the matter.
"Today's judgement of honourable CBI court underlines the stand taken by the JPC that the loss calculation (made by Comptroller and Auditor General) is erroneous and presumptive calculation is not correct," Chacko, who headed the JPC, which probed the 2G Spectrum scam, said here.
Unitech MD Sanjay Chandra today said that he is extremely grateful to the court's decision.
“I had complete faith in the judiciary from the start and I am extremely grateful that the honorable court has acquitted me of all charges. We had placed a robust defense rebutting each and every charge against us and today is a vindication of all I have stated in the past 7 years. There was no wrong-doing on my part or on the part of my companies. However the damage suffered by me and the companies continues to affect the health and financial status of my company and they continue to pay the price for this case having been foisted on us fraudulently and without any basis," he said.
Former AG Mukul Rohatgi, reacting to Subramanian Swamy's statement, said that Swamy is in habit of making wild and false allegations.
" I had appeared for some of these people at the time of grant of bail in SC, in 2012. After, I became AG, I had nothing to do with the case. To make personal allegations is meaningless," he said.
The special court said that CBI filed a "well choreographed charge sheet" containing incorrect facts which miserably failed to prove charges against the accused in 2G spectrum case.
Special judge O P Saini, who acquitted the accused facing trial in three separate cases lodged by the CBI and Enforcement Directorate, said that in the CBI's charge sheet filed against former telecom minister A Raja and others, incorrectfacts were recorded and they were entitled to be set free.
Giving a body blow to the CAG's and CBI's estimation of huge loss in grant of 2G licences, a special court today held that some people "artfully" arranged few selected facts and created a scam "when there was none".
The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), in its report that created an uproar when the UPA was in power, had estimated that the 2G scam had caused an astronomical loss of Rs 1.76 lakh crore to the state exchequer.
The CBI had alleged in its charge sheet that there was a loss of Rs 30,984 crore to the exchequer in allocation of licences for 2G spectrum, which were scrapped by the Supreme Court on February 2, 2012.
Shiv Sena today said that BJP must clarify why it raised the 2G scam issue in such a big way. Sena MP Sanjay Raut wondered if the court verdict meant
that "there was no scam in the first place".
"Those who raised the allegation of scam are now ruling the country. It is up to them to clarify," Raut said, without naming any party.
The Congress has said that the 2G verdict will remain a black mark in the history of Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) and the former CAG chief Vinod Rai should be prosecuted.
"A blind man can see. You know the CAG chief is today one of the strong advisors of the government, posted on various boards and organisations and is being rewarded for what he has done. That will remain a black mark in the history of CAG," Vadakkan said.
"He (Vinod Rai) should be prosecuted by the law of the land for creating such kind of excuses and cover-ups. I think he should be prosecuted," the Congress spokesperson told a private channel after the special courts verdict acquitting all the accused in the cases of 2G spectrum allocation scam.
DMK MP Kanimozhi celebrates with along her husband G Aravindan after she was acquitted by a special court in the 2G scam case, in New Delhi on Thursday. PTI Photo.
Buoyed by the 2G spectrum case verdict, the Congress today said that truth has finally prevailed and demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley apologise to the nation for the BJP's alleged "propaganda and lies" on the issue.
The Congress also said that accountability should be fixed against those including former Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) Vinod Rai who dubbed it a scam, after all the accused were acquitted in the case today by a special court as the prosecution failed to establish any charges.
Former prime minister Manmohan Singh, whose UPA-II government was rocked by the 2G scam, said the court judgement needs to be respected as it has "pronounced that the massive propaganda" unleashed against his government was without any foundation.
Congress has gone mad. They have got something to clutch onto bow, but this will be short-lived, Swamy said. This is not the final judgement and Congress will get a strong response in the final appeal judgement.
The CBI today said it would file an appeal against the 2G scam case verdict by a special court, which acquitted all the 16 accused rejecting the case presented by the agency.
"The judgement relating to the 2G scam case of today has been prima facie examined and it appears that the evidence adduced to substantiate the charges by the prosecution has not been appreciated in its proper perspective by the learned court. The CBI will be taking necessary legal remedies in the matter," CBI spokesperson Abhishek Dayal said.
The CBI and the apex court-appointed special public prosecutor Anand Grover today came in for sharp criticism from the special court which said the quality of prosecution in 2G cases had "totally deteriorated" and by the end it became "directionless".
Special Judge O P Saini observed that the CBI had started its case with "great enthusiasm and ardour" but at the final stage of the trial, SPP Grover and the regular CBI prosecutor moved in "two different directions without any coordination".
It would be pertinent to mention that at the start of the case, the apex court had appointed senior advocate U U Lalit, now a Supreme Court judge, as the SPP in the 2G case.
Later, when Lalit was appointed as a apex court judge, the top court had appointed Grover as SPP to present the case of both the CBI and ED before the special court.
This is not a setback at all. This is an aberration because the law officers were not serious to fight corruption. I would ask Prime Minister to set-up war-like council for fighting corruption: Swamy.
Today's judgement is bad and should be appealed in higher court, Subramanian Swamy said while addressing the media.
"Judge says earlier there was a lot of enthusiasm, but later it became worse and worse. Judge also said counsels were lackadaisical. This is a big condemnation of the Govt's controlling of the case," Swamy said.
CBI will appeal against the special court verdict in 2G case in Delhi HC, CNN-News18 reports quoting Abhishek Dayal, CBI's spokesperson.
AIADMK says it will appeal against the 2G verdict, reports News18. The acquittal is not final and won't have any effect on the RK Nagar bypoll, AIADMK said.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today said that Congress should not treat the 2G verdict as a "badge of honour".
The party's "zero loss theory" was proved to be wrong when the apex court squashed spectrum allocation in 2012, the minister said after a special court acquitted all accused in the 2G spectrum scam allocation case.
CBI has said it will be taking necessary legal remedies in the 2G scam.
"Today's judgement has been prima facie examined & it appears that evidence adduced to substantiate charges by the prosecution has not been appreciated in its proper perspective by the learned court," CBI said.
The Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) today welcomed the judgement of the special court acquitting its three top executives and Reliance Telecom Ltd in the 2G spectrum allocation scam case.
Three top executives of Reliance ADAG -- Gautam Doshi, Surendra Pipara and Hari Nair were acquitted in the case.
"Reliance Group welcomes the court verdict," a statement issued by the company said.
RECAP |The Congress is treating 2G verdict as a badge of honour, but its zero loss theory was proven wrong when the Supreme Court quashed spectrum allocation in February 2012: Finance Minister ArunJaitley
RECAP | I do not want to boast (about) anything. The court's judgement has to be respected. I am glad that the court has pronounced unambiguously. All the massive propaganda which was being done against the UPA was without any foundation. The judgement speaks for itself: Former PM Manmohan Singh
What has happened so far
1) Special CBI court acquitted all accused in the 2G case
2) Prosecution 'failed to prove charges beyond reasonable doubt': Court
3) It was a scam of lies by Opposition: Kapil Sibal
4) Congress trains its guns on ex-CAG Vinod Rai
5) Verdict not a clean chit to the Congress: FM Arun Jaitley
6) CBI says it will appeal against special court's judgement in Delhi HC
7) Former PM Manmohan Singh said the verdict shows it "was a massive propaganda against the UPA"
"The acquittal of all the accused by the special court has brought happiness to us. The verdict further proves that there was no wrong done. All this has been proved," saidDMK Working President MK Stalin.
"I continue to believe that a government’s priority needn’t be revenue maximisation. Don’t forget, spectrum & coal auctions have put a tremendous strain on PSU banks. Teledensity & affordable power for all are far more prudent policy priorities," former Telecom Minister Milind Deora has tweeted.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley reacts to the 2G verdict on News18. “Some parties are treating this verdict as a badge of honour. In 2007-08, spectrum was not given by auction, but on the basis of price discovery which was based on 2001 prices. Even within the policy implementation, there was huge element of arbitration. Cut-off date was advanced, first-come, first-served basis policy was intended to serve a few. It was then changed to first-come, first-pay policy.Favourite few were told in advance about the policy. Even the Supreme Court challenged this first-come, first-served policy and quashed it. The court called it unfair and intended to cause loss to the Government of India.Supreme Court directed the government to have a fresh policy. And in 2015, the NDA government got a much higher price…. (UPA) policy was designed to promote corruption. It was implemented in an unfair manner, causing loss of revenue to the government. Auctioning was getting much higher price. I am sure investigatingagencies and prosecuting agencies will look into it and decide what to do further in the matter. The Congress should not consider this as some kind of certificate of clean chit.”
Here are parts of the 2G case judgement
"In the beginning, the prosecution started with the case with great enthusiasm and ardour. However, as the case progressed, it became highly cautious and guarded in its attitude making it difficult to find out as to what prosecution wanted to prove. The quality of prosecution totally deteriorated and it became directionless and diffident."
"There is no material on record to show that Sh. A. Raja was mother lode of conspiracy in the instant case. There is also no evidence of his no-holds-barred immersion in any wrongdoing, conspiracy or corruption."
"We are saying that the PM should come to theHouse and give a clarification, this governmentwas formed on the basis that UPA was embroiled in 2G andother scams, but now it has been proved that it was just a scam of lies by the opposition," Congress leader Kapil Sibal told the media outside Parliament.
Clearly the court found that innocent people have been wronged. Justice has worked as it is supposed to work in our country, Congress leader Shashi Tharoortold the media outside Parliament.
Curbing corruption and cracking down on black money agenda and the '2G scam' was the premise on which the BJP rode to power in 2014 Lok Sabha elections. The BJP's slogans of corruption-free India and Congress-free India were based on the allegations in the case. Today's verdict is likely to have an impact on the Congress' image. Given his annointment as Congress President, RahulGandhi'smoves will be keenly observed. There is already talk and question being asked whether the BJPand the DMK will come together the next LokSabhaelections.
“This was a massive propaganda against the UPA without any proof,” former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said. The 2G case verdict brings big relief for Singh who was portrayed the villain of UPA by the BJP. Since the case surfaced, the former Prime Minister has been ridiculed for almost every wrongdoing the UPA did.
Former UPA law minister Veerappa Moily says that perceptions and presumptive value cannot constitute evidence in the court of law and that is what happened today. However, he lamented that the damage done to the UPA on account of the scandalous allegations was irreversible.
Rajya Sabha MP Majeed Memon said that there was talk in the Rajya Sabha today about the political ramifications of this verdict. The 2014 general elections were fought by the BJP using the '2G scam' as one of its chief narratives.
Manali Singhal, lawyer for Reliance ADAG, said that the prosecution has miserably failed to prove charges against the accused.
CNBC TV18 reports that the CBI may not move the Supreme Court over the 2G case. However, an official statement by the CBI on the matter is still awaited.
The 2G Files: What transpired in the case in the past 6-7 years.
Meanwhile, the CBI saysit iswaiting for copy of the court judgement and will take a legal accordingly.
All the accused facing trial in these cases had denied allegations levelled against them by the CBI and the ED. The court had in October 2011 framed charges against them under various provisions of the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act dealing with offences of criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery, using as genuine fake documents, abusing official position, criminal misconduct by public servant and taking bribe.
Allegation of a major scam involving the highest levels of government was never true, it was not correct and that has been established today, said former finance minister and Congress leaderP Chidambaram.
RECAP | Special CBI judge OP Saini acquitted all accused in the 2G spectrum allocation case stating that the prosecution "failed to prove charges beyond reasonable doubt". Those acquitted in the 2G spectrum scam case include former telecom minister A Raja, DMK MP Kanimozhi, former telecom secretary Siddharth Behura, Raja's erstwhile private secretary RK Chandolia, Swan Telecom promoters Shahid Usman Balwa and Vinod Goenka, Unitech Ltd MD Sanjay Chandra and three top executives of Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (RADAG) — Gautam Doshi, Surendra Pipara and Hari Nair, Directors of Kusegaon Fruits and Vegetables Pvt Ltd Asif Balwa and Rajiv Agarwal, Kalaignar TV director Sharad Kumar and Bollywood producer Karim Morani.
"I would love to thank everyone who stood by me," Kanimozhi, Rajya Sabha MP, told the media outside the court.
Former UPA ministers have quickly begun targetting former CAG Vinod Rai. Remember, it was the CAG report that had estimated the loss to the exchequer at Rs 1.76 lakh crore. “I had always maintained that this was no scam. It was a scam by former CAG Vinod Rai. We stand vindicated,” Kapil Sibal told News18. Sibal had succeeded A Raja as the telecom minister and claimed that the spectrum allocation had caused ‘zero loss’. Former finance minister P Chidambaram says the allegation of major scam was not true and that has been established.
