Congress president Sonia Gandhi, her son Rahul Gandhi and others were on Tuesday directed to appear in person on December 19 by a Delhi court which allowed their plea seeking exemption from personal appearance for the day in the National Herald case.
Senior advocates Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Harin Raval and Ramesh Gupta appeared for the Gandhis and other accused and moved separate pleas seeking exemption from personal apperance for their clients for today only.
“We are very keen to come before the court,” Singhvi told Metropolitan Magistrate lovleen, adding, “Please give us a date of your choice and that of the convenience of Subramanian Swamy.”
Swamy, who has filed the case, however, told the court that there are seven accused in the case and today’s date was fixed in September itself.
“Accused number 2 (Rahul Gandhi) has left for Chennai this morning,” he said.
The magistrate, however, told the defence counsel to ensure that all the accused appear before the court on the next date of hearing on December 19.
“Make sure that all the accused appear on December 19. I am giving exemption from personal appearance only for today. Don’t come in the morning on December 19. You come at 3 PM,” the magistrate said.
During the brief hearing in the jam-packed courtroom ,the court said, “Is the judgement of the (Delhi) High Court on the netIJ Can I see it.”
Responding to the court’s query, Swamy placed a copy of the verdict of the high court delivered yesterday before the court.
During the hearing, senior counsel Ramesh Gupta told the magistrate that accused Sam Pitroda is presently in the United States and they will try their best that he appears before the court on December 19.
To this, the court asked them to ensure that all the accused appear before it on December 19.
Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday left for a visit to flood-affected areas of Chennai and its suburbs and Puducherry. Gandhi would first visit Puducherry and later Cuddalore and Chennai during the day-long visit.
A number of other Ministers including Ravi Shankar Prasad, Jitender Singh, Rajiv Pratap Rudy and Nirmala Sitharaman attacked the Congress leadership over disrupting of Parliament.
Congress fielded three of its senior leaders and lawyers -- Kapil Sibal, Abhishek Singhvi and Randeep Surjewala -- who insisted that the government and the BJP wanted a “Congress-mukt” Bharat, and hence such cases against Congress leaders were being pushed.
Dubbing Subramanian Swamy as “His Master’s Voice”, Sibal alleged at the AICC briefing that the BJP leader has been specifically assigned to “persecute and prosecute” the Congress leadership and has been told to target them.
“Who is Subramanian Swamy. He is the power of attorney holder of the BJP to persecute and prosecute the Congress party. We are ready to face the magistrate,” Sibal said.
Former Finance Minister and senior lawyer P Chidambaram said the High Court “judgement in National Herald case incomprehensible as it says “what species of criminal offence is not required to be seen at this stage”.
“All assets and all income remain with Associated Journals. So, who has misappropriated whatIJ,” he said in a series of tweets. “Young Indian is the holding company. Associated Journals is the subsidiary. The directors are the same. So, who has cheated whomIJ”
“Simple question: how can directors of a non-profit company ( Young Indian ) be charged with illegal profitingIJ,” he said.
The former minister said “No one has has complained that property was entrusted&it has been misappropriated.Yet HC upholds summons to answer charge of breach of trust.
“No one has complained of being cheated. Yet HC upholds summons to answer charge of cheating.”