Maran brothers file separate bail pleas in Aircel-Maxis case

Former telecom minister Dayanidhi Maran and his brother Kalanithi Maran appeared before a special court of the central bureau of investigation (CBI) in the Aircel-Maxis deal case here on Monday.

The Maran brothers turned up at the special court, which is hearing all the cases of 2G spectrum allocation scam, in compliance with the summons issued against them and other accused in the case on October 29 last year.

They also moved separate petitions, pleading the special CBI judge O P Saini to grant them bail in the case. The court directed the prosecution (CBI) to come up with its response to the bail applications filed by the two accused. “Put up for reply on bail application on March 16,” the court said.

An authorised representative of Chennai-based Sun Direct TV Private Limited, which is also an accused in the case, appeared before the court on behalf of the firm. The court directed the CBI to supply all the documents pertaining to the case, including charge sheet, to the three accused.

This comes days after the Supreme Court refused to intervene with the special CBI court order summoning them as accused in the Aircel-Maxis case, asking the Maran brothers to question the “jurisdictional aspect” before the special court itself.

The Maran brothers had moved the apex court seeking its permission to approach Delhi High Court against the summons issued to them, contending that the Aircel-Maxis case was not part of the 2G spectrum allocations cases and hence, could not be heard by a judge who had been nominated to hold trial of the cases arising out of the 2G scam.

Besides Maran bothers and Sun Direct TV Private Limited, Malaysia-based business tycoon T Ananda Krishnan, Malaysia-based firm Maxis Communication Berhad, Malaysian national and a top executive of the Maxis group, Augustus Ralph Marshall, as well as UK-based Astro All Asia Networks and Mauritius-based South Asia Entertainment Holding Limited are accused in the case.

The CBI had submitted a charge sheet against all the eight accused, including four companies, in the court in August last year. The investigation agency filed the charge sheet against the accused only after the Supreme Court turned down a plea of Dayanidhi, who had moved the apex court seeking it to restrain the CBI from filing the charge sheet.