CJI to form bench as judge recuses

NEW DELHI: Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra will constitute a new bench to hear the alleged Bofors pay-off case after Justice AM Khanwilkar Tuesday recused himself from hearing the matter.

Justice Khanwilkar was part of the three-judge bench, including the CJI and Justice DY Chandrachud, which was to hear the appeal by advocate Ajay Agarwal challenging the Delhi HC’S clean chit to all the accused in 2005. Khanwilkar did not give any reason for recusing himself. The CJI has fixed March 28 as the next date of hearing in the case.

The Delhi HC had quashed all charges against the three Hinduja brothers — Srichand, Gopichand and Prakashchand — and the Bofors company, while castigating the CBI for its handling of the case, saying it had cost the exchequer about ~250 crore.

Advocate Agarwal had filed an appeal challenging the acquittals in Supreme court after the CBI failed to move the plea.

The SC had last month taken objection to the advocate, who is not a party to the case, filing the appeal and asked him to explain his locus standi. The CBI on Tuesday also informed the court that it, too, had filed an appeal in the case citing new evidence.

The CBI said in its appeal it has decided to pursue the case and conduct further investigation in the wake of the television interview of Michael Hershman, the president of the Us-based private detective firm Fairfax.

Michael Hershman, in a TV interview last year, claimed that during his probe into the violation of currency control laws by some wealthy Indians, he received leads indicating that Bofors had paid bribes through banks. Hershman also offered to testify and help the Indian agencies.