New Delhi, 01 September: The Supreme Court on Friday said it will begin the final hearing in the Rs 64 crore Bofors payoff case in the last week of October. Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud said the hearing will begin the week of October 30.
The petitioner, BJP leader and advocate Ajay Agrawal, had requested an early hearing in the case. He had challenged the Delhi High Court May 31, 2005, judgment quashing all charges against the Europe-based Hinduja brothers in the case. The apex court had on October 18, 2005, admitted Agrawal’s petition which was filed after the CBI failed to approach the top court with the appeal within the 90-day deadline following the high court verdict.
Recent media reports have suggested there was a financial quid pro quo for the Rs 1,437 crore Howitzer gun deal in 1986. The hearing assumes significance in the wake of a demand in Parliament by ruling BJP MPs for reopening of the probe into the Bofors kickback scandal after media reports quoting Swedish chief investigator Sten Lindstrom alleged there was bribery at the top levels.
