File affidavit on behalf of PM, SC tells Centre

Nov 19, 2010 |

Correspondent

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New Delhi, Nov. 18: Even as the Centre in the Supreme Court swore by the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh’s track record of maintaining high standards of propriety in public life, the top court on Thursday sought an affidavit on “his behalf” explaining the reasons for the delay in deciding an application for sanction to prosecute the former telecom minister, Mr A. Raja, in the 2G spectrum scam case.

Giving the government till Saturday to submit the affidavit in response to the Janata Party president and former Union minister, Mr Subramanian Swamy’s petition, a bench comprising Justices G.S. Singhvi and A.K. Ganguly said, “It is serious. We must know what has been kept back.”

A brief order for filing the affidavit came even as the Solicitor-General, Mr Gopal Subramaniam, came up with the entire PMO records pertaining to the application sent to the PM on November 29, 2008. The S-G also submitted that every letter of Dr Swamy had been dealt with by the PMO.

Not preferring to go through the PMO papers at this stage, the bench, which also took on record a copy of the CAG report, observed that the findings of the CAG were “revealing”.

As the S-G made every effort to avoid an order for an affidavit, asserting that the records were ready for the perusal of the court, the bench said filing the affidavit was necessary to afford a chance to Dr Subramanian Swamy to submit a reply.

“We are giving you a chance to put it on affidavit,” the bench told the S-G.

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