SC warns of quashing Jet-Etihad deal if irregularities are found

Subramanian Swamy had filed PIL saying that deal was against public interest as there has been squandering of natural resource

The Supreme Court on Friday made it clear that it would quash the Jet-Etihad Airways deal if there are any irregularities in it.

The apex court also issued notices to the Centre and the Income Tax Department on a plea seeking direction to the government to place the transcript of tapped telephonic conversation of former corporate lobbyist Niira Radia in which she allegedly had talked about the civil aviation sector. The court passed the order on Bharatiya Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy’s plea seeking its direction to quash the deal on the ground that it was against public interest as there has been squandering of natural resource. At the outset, Swamy raised objection over Centre’s non-filing of its response on his plea.

Solicitor-General Mohan Parasaran sought four more weeks to file the response and also raised the plea of maintainability by saying that earlier, a similar petition, questioning the AirAsia deal, was not entertained by the apex court and Swamy was asked to move the Delhi High Court.     

“We have already issued the notice in this case after finding prima facie merits,” the Bench said. The Bench assured Swamy that his plea will be heard and the deal would be set aside if it is convinced that irregularities were there.

“If we are convinced then we would certainly set it aside,” the Bench said giving last opportunity to the Centre to file the response and hoped that it would not seek any further adjournment in the case. Referring to the Radia tapes, Swamy, in his application, said the documents are important for the adjudication of the case and the apex court had already ordered a CBI probe into the alleged involvement of middlemen in the aviation sector, as claimed in the taped conversation.