SC to hear Ashok Chavan's plea in Adarsh scam on April 24

The Supreme Court will hear on April 24 former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan's plea against Bombay High Court order declining to recall its earlier order refusing the CBI to drop his name as an accused in Adarsh Housing Society scam.

A bench of Justice J.Chelameswar and Justice R.K.Agarwal said that the matter would be heard on April 24 as they asked the Maharashtra government to seek adjournment of the hearing before the trial court.

The court agreed to hear Chavan's plea as senior counsel Kapil Sibal told the court that while the special judge holding the trial of Adarsh scam case says that he has not taken cognizance of offence against former chief minister but the high court says that the cognizance has been taken.

"I have a problem with the impugned order. The special judge states that the cognizance of the offence has not been taken. The high court states that the cognizance has been taken," Sibal told the court adding that if trial court has taken cognizance of the alleged offence against Chavan, then it should have issued summons but this has not been done.

Sibal said that Chavan has been charged under Section 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 which says that person can be charged under it even if there is no intention to commit an offence. Incidentally, this provision was invoked while summoning former prime minister Manmohan Singh, industrialist Kumar Manglam Birla and others in the allocation of Talabire II coal block to Hindalco Industries.

Sibal told the court that Birla has challenged the validity of the provision.