Karim Morani put in Tihar jail

He has used every possible legal subterfuge to delay the ultimate"

Karim Morani, Bollywood film producer and an accused in the 2G spectrum scam case, was on Monday arrested and lodged in the Tihar Central Jail after the special court here rejected his bail plea noting that he had used every possible “legal subterfuge to delay the ultimate.”

He becomes the 14th person to be remanded in judicial custody in Tihar Jail in the case — a high-profile list that boasts two Tamil Nadu politicians, three real estate tycoons and two bureaucrats besides six top business executives of various companies, including Reliance ADA Group, Kalaignar TV and DB Realty.

The court had last Monday dismissed his anticipatory bail plea and ordered him to appear the next day or face “coercive process.” On appearing, he moved a plea seeking that a bail bond be accepted under Section 88 of the Criminal Procedure Code to avoid being taken into custody.

Morani, the promoter of Cineyug Films, was chargesheeted on April 25 for his alleged role in transferring Rs.200 crore from Dynamix Realty to Kalaignar TV and issued summons to appear before the court on May 6. But he took recourse to medical grounds to refrain from presenting himself in court until last Tuesday. The CBI had alleged that he received a consideration of Rs.6 crore for participating in the transaction.

Taking note of his delaying tactics, Special Judge O.P. Saini said: “I may reluctantly add that the applicant/accused has used every possible legal subterfuge to delay the ultimate as he has filed seven applications within a span of less than one month.”

“An accused is entitled to avail himself of all legal remedies which may be available to him in law and there can be no objection to this, but the sheer number of applications filed by him, in my humble view, reflects adversely on his conduct indicating that he is interested in deliberately delaying the disposal of the matter by seeking date after date, on one pretext or the other,” Mr. Saini said.

Mr. Saini concluded his 67-page order with a gentle reprimand: “I sincerely hope, considering the nature of the case, he would improve in future and would cooperate in early disposal of the case.”