The Congress and National Herald newspaper publishing company Associated Journals limited (AJl) on Friday submitted their balance sheet for the year 2010-11 in a sealed cover before the trial court. The Advocates of the Congress argued that the account statements to be kept in a sealed cover till the decision on this regard decided by Delhi High Court.
The battery of lawyers led by RS Cheema and Ramesh Gupta first argued against submitting the balance sheets and obliged the court only after the Metropolitan Magistrate lovleen insisted for it. “You have agreed to submit the balance sheets of Congress party and AJl today and I have already ordered for it. There is no point of arguments,” said Magistrate.
While submitting the accounts of the scam period, the advocates insisted that the documents should be kept in sealed cover. Petitioner Subramnian Swamy’s advocates Roxna Swamy and Dileep Kumar said they should be given a copy of the account statements pointing out that there was no stay from the High Court against trial court’s order.
Congress lawyers’ objected to Swamy’s demand. “The documents may not be opened or brought on record without hearing the counsel for applicant,” they said. The lawyers said the summoned documents were already on court’s record and “the prayer by Swamy for summoning the documents was made either by sheer oversight or just to publicise the issue.”
The trial court has posted the matter of May 5. Meanwhile, the Congress’ appeal will come up in the High Court on April 18 against the trial court’s order on summoning documents from the aprty along with six Government departments. All the Government departments have submitted the documents to trial court in sealed cover in March.