Thursday, February 21, 2019

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'SC proves that nobody is above Law' that was published in Newsband


SC proves that nobody is above Law
A Bench of Justices Rohinton Nariman and Vineet Saran ordered RCom, led by Mr. Ambani, to “purge” the contempt by paying a balance of ₹453 crore of dues to Ericsson within four weeks. If not, Mr. Ambani along with Reliance Telecom Ltd. (RTL) chairperson Satish Seth and Reliance Infratel Ltd. (RITL) chairperson Chhaya Virani would each have to serve a sentence of three months’ imprisonment.
 “The undertakings given on the footing that the amount of ₹550 crore would be paid only out of the sale of assets was false to the knowledge of the three Reliance companies,” Justice Nariman wrote. “This itself affects the administration of justice, and is therefore, contempt of court,” the Bench held.
The court also ordered the three companies to pay the Supreme Court Registry a fine of ₹1 crore each within four weeks.
The Supreme Court couldn't do anything when Karnataka was openly defying it.  The best the SC could do was to beg and plead.  But when it comes to individuals the SC will be able to show what it is made of and not to be messed with 
The SC has demonstrated that nobody is above the Law. They should now apply it to all the cases involving the politicians and bureaucrats.
Now what, after the verdict of the highest court of India finding Shri Anil Ambani and others guilty of contempt in Ericsson’s case? What will happen to the offset contracts of the Rafale Deal given to this group’s coy, sidelining our profitmaking/dividendpaying PSU, The HAL. Will the Rafale offset contracts be honoured and executed to the satisfaction of IAF and GOI, or will it be mired in controversies and delay?
India needs to focus on justice for everyone, not just high profile cases. In this case, it is good that justice has come in time.
Lastly, why is it that, when it comes to Big Players in our country the apex court warns these defaulters with the least possible term as penalty - such as three months and one month?

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