As Rao fights with his back to the wall, Congress president Sitaram Kesari is patiently waiting for events to force Rao to resign as leader of the Congress Party in Parliament (CPP). Any development, such as yesterdays court order, causes a minor ripple in Congress by reviving the debate on successor to Rao as CPP chief.
Rao, who was present at the Vigyan Bhawan annexe, the venue of his trial, appeared upset on the judge pronouncing the order rejecting his bail on the plea that he being an influential person and leader of a party supporting the present government, he was capale of tampering with evidence.
Congress spokesman VN Gadgil told reporters who wanted to know whether Rao would quit as CPP chief, that it was for Rao himslef to do what he should do. This has been our consistent stand always, even in the case of ministers when they were charged in hawala case, Gadgil said. He would give his final opinion only after Raos appeal is disposed of.
In the 36-page order, the CMM directed Rao and former Union minister K K Tewary, who is also accused, to surrender before the court on November 14 or before. According to the October 13 direction of the Supreme Court, Rao and other accused would continue on anticipatory bail for another week.
The court also directed the Tihar jail authorities to produce two other accused Chandraswami and his secretary Kailash Nath Aggarwal alias Mamaji in the court on November 14.
On whether Raos sinking deeper into court cases would affect the partys image, Gadgil said party president Kesri had already given his comment. However he said his party was keen on improving its image and that is why Kesri has declared his assets before the CWC.
Rao has to appear on summons before additional and district sessions judge, Ajit Bharihoke in the Lakhubhai Pathak case today at Vigyan Bhawan.
Rejecting the plea of Rao to grant bail as he is an old man and suffering from various ailments, the CMM said undoubtedly Rao requires the medical care as stated in his bail plea, that however, does not mean that he is not doing his normal functions as a political leader of the country.
Quoting from another plea of Rao for exemption from personal appearence in the court, Kumar pointed out that Rao had mentioned in it that he needed exemption because he has to attend parliamentary party meetings as CPP leader and travel throughout the country in connection with his political duties which shows that inspite of medical problems he (Rao) is able to discharge his normal functions, as political leader.
The CMM said therefore his health problems do not come in the way if he is not (not) enlarged on bail. But at the same time he has to be provided with the requisite medical care that he has already been getting, the CMM said.
Accepting the cbi plea that it apprehended tampering of the evidence by the accused, the cmm said chandraswami and kailash nath aggarwal are men with global connections having political clout at national as well as of international level and even the delhi high court had observed it while rejecting their bail in lakhubhai pathak cheating case.
mr rao has also been summoned by another court on november 13 in the third case relating to bribing four jmm-mps during the no-confidence motion in july 1993.
the cmm said due to his very long stay at the central stage of politics, mr rao wields considerable clout in the establishment, and there is thus strong apprehension that the accused persons will tamper the evidence and influence the witnesses. These apprehensions are too obvious.
mr kumar said the inordinate delay in the case has already destroyed important evidence and during the past five years, when mr rao was the prime minister, this case did not see the light of the day. There was no progress in the investigation worth the name, he observed.
The cmm further said that there existed close proximity between chandraswami, agarwal and mr rao, while chandraswami and mamaji have also very close association with the international arms dealer adnan khashoggi and his son-in-law larry j kolb, who as an accused played a prominent role in this case.
The closeness between chandraswami and mr rao was clear from the fact that the former used to alight from his car just inside the porch of the official residence of mr rao even when he was the prime minister and the security staff would not check him, rather he was provided protection by the government the cmm said.
He said chandraswami was known to mr rao for the past 25 years and used to call him bada pandit. the statement of the then indian high commissioner to trinidad and tobago, mr shiv kumar shows that mr agarwal called him (mr rao) at his residence from new york claiming to be his family friend.
Referring to the nature and seriousness of the offence, the cmm said i find that section 195 ipc (indian penal code) is an offence against public justice.
Mr raos counsel during the bail arguments had focused entirely on section 195 ipc which deals with forging of documents with the intent to cause conviction of a person against whom the documents are forged. The maximum punishment under the section is seven years rigorous imprisionment.
Mr kumar said section 195 ipc is core, reservoir of the strength and superior section of the law. It is not an offence against an individual. Here the assault is on law itself.
he said the gravity of such an offence could be gauged from its impact on the society at large. it is not an offence committed by an unknown individual against another, the personalities involved are not men of straw or ordinary mortals, mr kumar observed.
Mr raos counsel during the bail argument had alleged that cbi had substituted section 195 ipc in the chargesheet to section 193 ipc in the fir with the sole purpose of securing conviction of mr rao. Section 193 also deals with forging of documents with the intent to start judicial proceedings against a person.
The cmm said the brazen use of section 195 by the accused in this manner with the help of state machinery was unprecedented, extraordinary and unparalleled in the post-indepndence era.
Judge hints at threats to judiciary
United News of India NEW DELHI
Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Prem Kumar yesterday made candid remarks on the trials, tribulations, and threats to judges propelled to play the role of kingpin of the system. Judges today face tribulations as well as trials not contemplated by their predecessors, the judge, in his 36-page order, observed. As Rao sat with a grim face, Prem Kumar refused him bail and pronounced the order which stated that the society had a stake in ensuring the independence of the judiciary.
Referring to implicit threats to judges, he said to keep the judges in want of the essential accountrements and thus to impede them in the proper discharge of their duties is to impair and whittle away justice itself.
Expressing apprehensions, he said suffice it is to say that an ill-equipped, unsafe, uncared and undefended trial judge will not be able to meet the emerging challenges.
