New Delhi, Aug. 13: The Supreme Court has allowed the US firm, Venture Global Engineering, to place before the Hyderabad civil court all the facts in its possession about the Satyam Computers fraud.
The US company has been involved in a legal dispute with Satyam over diversion of funds from a joint venture much before the scam broke out. The additional chief judge of Hyderabad is hearing the suit of VGE, but in April the AP High Court allowed Satyam’s plea that the developments relating to the accounting fraud in the company had no bearing on the dispute with the US firm.
However, while allowing VGE’s petition, an SC bench comprising Justices P. Sathasivam and A.K. Ganguly said the trial court should allow VGE to bring such materials too on record as they were not wholly irrelevant and could have a bearing on the appellant’s plea for setting aside the award given by arbitrators.
The court accepted the US firm’s contention that not presenting the facts before the trial court would prejudice its case.
In April 2006, the London Court of International Arbitration had ruled in favour of Satyam and held that it was entitled to buy out VGE’s share in the joint venture at the contractually stipulated price. VGE later unsuccessfully challenged the award before US courts.