Sunil Bharti Mittal, Ravi Ruia summoned in 2G case

A special court on Tuesday summoned as accused Sunil Bharti Mittal, chairman and managing director, Bharti Airtel, and Ravi Ruia, vice-chairman, Essar Group, taking cognisance of the chargesheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against the telecom companies, alleging corruption and criminal conspiracy in allocation of additional spectrum in 2002.

The other accused in the case are former telecom secretary Shyamal Ghosh, former managing director of Hutchison Max Telecom Asim Ghosh and three telecom companies – Bharti Cellular, Hutchison Max Telecom and Sterling Cellular.

All seven accused have been summoned to court on April 11.

“I also find that at that relevant time Sunil Bharti Mittal was chairman-cum-managing director of Bharti Cellular, Asim Ghosh was managing director of Hutchison Max Telecom and Ravi Ruia was a director of Sterling Cellular, who used to chair the meetings of its board.

In that capacity, they were/or are, prima facie, in control of affairs of the respective companies. As such, they represent the directing mind and will of each company and their state of mind is the state of mind of the companies. They are/or were “alter ego” of their respective companies. In this fact situation, the acts of the companies are to be attributed and imputed to them,” special CBI judge O P Saini said.

The chargesheet filed by the CBI in December 2012 had named only the government conspirators –  late Pramod Mahajan, the then telecom minister, and former telecom
secretary Shyamal Ghosh.

At an earlier hearing, the special CBI judge had pulled up the CBI for not naming the heads of the telecom companies in the chargesheet.

“We are saddened at the summons being issued to Bharti Airtel Ltd and to Sunil Bharti Mittal, as the chairman and managing director of Bharti Airtel Ltd. We would like to reiterate that Bharti Airtel Ltd and its promoters have always practised the highest standards of corporate governance and accordingly view the chargesheet as an attempt to tarnish its high reputation. We have full faith in the judicial process and are confident our position will be vindicated before the courts,” Airtel said in a statement.

“The Essar Group has always displayed the highest regard for law and ethics and has always conducted its business in accordance with the laws of the land. Thus, the recent order purporting to take cognisance against Ravi Ruia, in relation to allegations of excess spectrum, is both shocking and surprising,” an Essar statement said.

@DNA