The Supreme Court Friday denied an immediate hearing on Sahara India chief Subrata Roy's plea to recall a non-bailable warrant issued against him for not appearing before the court in person on Feb 26.
An apex court bench headed by Justice K.S. Radhakrishnan said it was not possible for it to hear the plea Friday as there were other matters listed before it in the afternoon. Justice Radhakrishnan said the matter is listed for March 4 and it will be taken up then only.
Appearing for the Sahara chief, senior counsel Ram Jethamalani mentioned the application for an urgent hearing.
Jethmalani also informed the court that Roy has already surrendered in Lucknow.
The matter was mentioned in the afternoon again but Justice Radhakrishnan again declined to hold an out-of-turn hearing.
The court remained unmoved even when it was informed that Subrata Roy has surrendered and his arrest paper can be placed before the court.
Roy Thursday moved an application tendering unqualified apology for his failure to appear before it Feb 26 as was directed by the court Feb 20.
He sought the condoning of his non-appearance before the court Feb 26. Roy in his application told the court that his non-appearance before the court as directed Feb 20 was neither "intentional" nor "deliberate".
Roy had urged the court to recall its order of Feb 26 as well as the non-bailable warrants and stay its operation till the pendency of his application.
In his application to the court, he said that the non-recall of the non-bailable warrant shall cause grave prejudice as well as cause irreparable loss and injury to him.
The failure to appear before the court earned Roy non-bailable warrant with the court directing that he "shall be arrested and produced before the court March 4 at 2 p.m."
While Roy did not appear before the court on the grounds of the serious health condition of his 92-year-old mother, the other three directors of Sahara Group's two companies SIRECL and SHICL - Ashok Roy Choudhary, Ravi Shankar Dubey and Vandana Bhargava - complied with the orders.
The Supreme Court had directed the presence of Roy and three directors of Sahara India Real Estate Corporation Limited (SIRECL) and Sahara Housing Investment Corporation Limited (SHICL) following the failure of the two companies to submit to market regulator SEBI title deeds of its unencumbered properties to secure the balance of Rs.19,000 crore of Rs.24,000 crore that it had collected through Optionally Fully Convertible Debentures (OFCD).
Sahara companies have already deposited Rs.5,120 crore with the SEBI in December 2012.
