CBI to question several people abroad in Satyam case

The Central Bureau of Investigation, probing the accounting scam at Satyam Computer Services, would question several people in the US, UK, Mauritius, Singapore, Belgium and the British Virgin Islands. It is examining a possible diversion of funds from Satyam to these countries.

Letters Rogatory (LR), a formal request from a court to a foreign court for judicial assistance, has already been sent and CBI expects a response shortly. "Special teams would be sent to these countries this month,'' a senior official said.

In all, there would be about 150 people in these countries who would be questioned. The official, however, did not specify if these were Satyam employees or not.

It has also written to the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, the regulatory body for the profession, seeking its report on the role of auditors in the scam. The ICAI had recently said the auditors did have a role in the financial scam. "We will study the report and prepare our case depending on the merit of the report,'' the official said.

The CBI will also soon file a second chargesheet in the case.

Bail orders reserved for Friday: A lower court said it would give a decision tomorrow on the bail petition of Satyam founder B Ramalinga Raju, being treated at Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences. He asked for bail last week on health grounds. Raju and his aides were arrested in January and have since been housed at Chanchalguda jail. The court had refused bail to Raju and others on earlier occasions, after the CBI argued it would hamper the investigation.

A petition for conducting lie detection and brain mapping tests on Raju and his aides is pending before a bench of the High Court. Orders on a petition seeking a fast-track court for speedy trial were also pending, the CBI said.

Arguing Raju's case, the defence counsel said it took four-and-a-half hours for the jail authorities to shift Raju to the hospital after he complained of chest pain last month. He is also suffering from Hepatitis C. Raju also had irregular heart beats. The jail does not have sufficient facilities or expertise to handle emergencies, he said.