Sahara runs into more trouble

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to relax its order restraining Sahara Group chief Subrata Roy from going abroad till his company furnishes details of refunding Rs 20,000 crore raised fraudulently from investors.

A bench of justices K.S. Radhakrishnan and J.S. Khehar said it will allow him to leave the country only when the Sahara Group furnishes all the documents to reveal the source of Rs 22,885 crore which it claimed to have refunded to its investors.

It said that if the company failed to show the source of the money then it would direct “further probe”.

Roy’s counsel pleaded that his client be allowed to go abroad for business purposes and he will return before the next date of hearing. The court, however, dismissed the argument.

“Everything is going in a circle. We want to finish this aspect of the case on the next date of hearing. If you give the source then a day after we would allow you to go abroad,” the bench said.

It said that delay is on the part of the company to furnish details and directed the group to place all the documents including the bank statements sought by SEBI before February 11 when it would take up the case for further hearings.

The Supreme Court had on November 21 last year barred Roy from leaving the country and also restrained it from selling any of its properties for failing to refund around Rs 20,000 crore of investors’ money.