Justice Sikri, who had represented CJI Gogoi on the high-powered committee headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi that controversially removed Alok Verma as CBI director on January 10, did not give any specific reason for withdrawing from hearing the case.
The apex court sources said that Justice Sikri will be a part of the selection committee which includes Prime Minister Narendra Modi and senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge.
A bench headed by Chief Justice T S Thakur got infuriated when senior advocate Rajeev Dhavan, appearing for Sahara, said they have not been involved in the process of selling of properties by Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).
Sahara's lawyer Keshav Mohan said that a draft of Rs 353 crore has been deposited in the SEBI-Sahara account.
A bench of Justices A K Sikri and N V Ramana said it may remand back the matter to Delhi High Court to decide Kejriwal and other's plea seeking discharge in the case, on merit.
The court was hearing petitions seeking setting aside ofan order of the Special CBI Judge by which Ruia and Mittal,whose name did not figure in CBI's charge sheet as accused,were summoned on March 19, last year.
A bench comprising Chief Justice H L Dattu and Justice A K Sikri ordered listing of plea of Balwa for hearing on November 18.
The Delhi High Court today set aside the cap of 200 SMSs per day sent through a mobile phone SIM for personal communications but upheld the curb on unwanted commercial SMSs saying they infringed the "equally" important right to privacy of "unwilling recipients".