Reliance ADAG executives not only created a "web of companies" but also conspired to circumvent the DoT policy to get maximum out of the 2G scam, the Delhi High Court said while refusing them to give them bail in the case.
ADAG Group MD Gautam Doshi, its Group President Surendra Pipara and Vice-President Hari Nair, who were named as accused in the first chargesheet by CBI, were "in league" to achieve the "end of conspiracy" in 2G spectrum scam, Justice Ajit Bharihoke said.
"The charge sheet prima facie discloses that the three top Reliance officials facilitated commission of offence by creating a web of companies with a view to concealing the fact that Swan Telecom, which was floated with the object to achieve the end of the conspiracy, was ineligible to get UAS Licences on the date of application as on the said day, it was controlled by Relaince ADAG," Justice Bharihoke said.
"In order to achieve the end of conspiracy, Hari Nair, in league with Gautam Doshi and Surendra Pipara, falsified the records… Charge sheet reveals that they entered into a criminal conspiracy with the object to enable Reliance ADA Group Companies to get UAS Licences for 13 circles which they were not eligible to get," the court said.
Besides the three, Reliance Communications Ltd is also an accused in the case.
They are accused of creating shell firms like Swan Telecom, Zebra Consultancy Services, Giraffe Consultancy Private Ltd and Parrot Consultants to create a web in which no company is a holding firm and the officials are the real masters, the court said.
The court noted that Swan Telecom was accutally funded by Reliance ADAG and it separately applied for the licence to bypass the then eligibility rule which debarred existing players to enter the fray.
"Accused persons structured Swan Telecom in such a manner that its equity holding was shown as 90.10 percent with Tiger Traders Pvt Ltd and 9.90 percent with Reliance Telecom Ltd. The investigation into holding structures of Tiger Traders Pvt Ltd revealed that it was actually funded by the Reliance ADA Group," the court said.
The court said that after Reliance ADAG applied for 2G licence through Swan Telecom, it got GSM spectrum in 13 circles under dual technology policy.
This rendered Swan Telecom useless for Reliance ADAG, which withdrew its holding and transferred the shell firm to Shahid Balwa and Vinod Goenka, it said.
"Accordingly, Reliance ADA Group withdrew its holding from Swan Telecom and the three accused transferred the control of Swan Telecom to co-accused Shahid Balwa and Vinod Goenka in order to facilitate them to cheat the Department of Telecom by getting UAS Licence in the name of Swan Telecom which was till October 18, 2007 ineligible for licence," the court noted.
Apart from Swan Telecom and Tiger Traders, Reliance ADAG floated two more companies-Zebra Consultancy Services Pvt Ltd and Parrot Consultants Pvt Ltd.
"The equity holding of aforesaid two companies and Tiger Traders was structured by three officials in such a manner that those companies were crossholding each other in interlocking structure (to ensure) that neither of those companies was absolute owner of any company and this practically left the control of all the three companies in the hands the petitioners," it said.
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