Swan not associate of Reliance Tel:Balwa

The alleged note of caution to CBI by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) on Swan Telecom not being an "associate" firm of Reliance Telecom was on Tuesday cited by Shahid Usman Balwa in a Delhi court as a ground for stay of the trial against him in the 2G case."As per a news report, the MCA told CBI that Swan Telecom, now Etisalat DB, and Loop Telecom were not associates of Reliance Telecom and Essar respectively." "If this is the existing position, then by which standards they (CBI) are asking for framing of charges. The trial and framing of charges be stayed forthwith," Majeed Memon, counsel for Balwa, told Special CBI Judge O P Saini. CBI is "deliberately" and "mischievously" suppressing its communication with MCA which asked the agency to seek a legal opinion on the issue, he said. "The MCA said the Companies Act does not define the term 'associate' and as per the accounting standard, Swan cannot be held an associate of Reliance Telecom," Memon said while concluding two-day arguments on framing of charges. Accusing CBI of "putting the cart before the horse", Memon said the agency did not heed to the advice and is rushing to get charges framed, which is not in the interest of justice. Summing up his arguments, Memon said Balwa did not cause any loss to the state as the Prime Minister has already told Parliament that the government did not incur loss. "I did not conspire against Tata and it was Venugopal Dhoot and Datacom which elbowed Tata out of the race," he said, adding Swan Telecom was an "eligible" firm and hence no criminality could be attributed to Balwa. The Department of Telecom (DoT) granted licenses and Balwa had no role in that, he said, adding Tata, which also gave donation to the tune of Rs 20 crore to a hospital in Tamil Nadu, has not been quizzed. The court would tomorrow hear arguments on behalf of Vinod Goenka, another director of Swan