The Delhi High Court on Monday sought response from Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi on an application filed by Subramanian Swamy regarding summoning of various documents and witnesses in the National Herald Case.
A single judge bench of the high court presided over by Justice Suresh Kumar Kait while issuing notice on the application, also stayed the trial court proceedings in the case till the pendency of this application.
The said application has challenged an order of the trial court dated February 11 by which the trial court had said Swamy’s application under section 244 of the CrPC shall be considered after the evidence of the Complainant is over.
In his application before the high court, Swamy while challenging the order has said ACMM has failed to appreciate that under Section 244 CrPC, Swamy is entitled to apply to the Magistrate to summon witness(s) at any stage to produce the documents in
the Examination in chief; in support of the Complaint.
The high court will now hear the matter next on April 12.
Earlier in January this year, the trial court had abated the criminal proceedings against Congress leader Motilal Vohra in the National Herald Case.
Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sachin Gupta passed the order after the late Congress leader’s counsel placed on record his death certificate and urged the court for abatement of proceedings qua him. ”proceedings in the present case qua the accused no.3 Sh. Motil Lal Vora stands abated,” the bench said in its order passed on January 28.
Vora, passed away in the national capital on December 21, just a day after celebrating his 93rd birthday. He had recovered from Covid-19 in October and was admitted to Delhi’s Escorts Hospital on December 19 after he complained of breathlessness.
The case pertains to the assignment of a Rs. 90 crore loan advanced by the Congress party to Associated Journals Ltd (AJL) – the owner of National Herald to Young Indian for a consideration of Rs. 50 lakh.
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BJP leader Subramanium Swamy, in a private criminal complaint, has accused Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi, his mother and interim Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Motilal Vora, Oscar Fernandes, Suman Dubey, Sam Pitroda, and others of cheating, criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust and misappropriation of property.However, all the seven accused persons in the case including the Gandhi, Fernandes, Dubey and others had denied the said allegations levelled against them.