Supreme Court stays trial against TTV Dhinakaran in Fera case
The case against Dhinakaran was that he allegedly acquired USD 10.49 million in foreign exchange without obtaining permission from the RBI.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday stayed the criminal trial pending against AMMK leader T.T.V. Dhinakaran in the 1996 FERA violation case filed against him by the Enforcement Directorate.
A Bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Sanjiv Khanna stayed the trial after hearing senior counsel Abhishek Manu Singhvi and counsel Hariharan appearing for Mr. Dhinakaran and counsel for ED, which had appealed against the Madras High Court order directing supply of certain documents.
The case against Dhinakaran was that he allegedly acquired USD 10.49 million in foreign exchange without obtaining permission from the Reserve Bank of India and deposited it in the current account of Dipper Investments Ltd., a company incorporated in the British Virgin Islands, and having account with Barclays Bank in UK.
Dhinakaran had filed the petition in the High Court challenging the order of the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (Economic Offences-II), Chennai declining to issue copies of certain documents, including the case diary, sought by him. The ED submitted that Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA), 1973, prohibits disclosure of any document, information, or intelligence of the department, which were kept highly confidential and protected. Such documents cannot be provided, it had said and appealed against the order.
On Monday when counsel for the ED insisted that the documents sought could not be supplied, the CJI said, "We will stay the trial. You keep quiet for over six months and want the trial to proceed. Either you give the documents or we will stay the trial." As the counsel insisted on proceeding with the appeal, the Bench issued notice to Mr. Dhinakaran seeking his response to ED's appeal in four weeks and in the meanwhile stayed the trial.