Court allows CBI to retain documents of Nanda

A court in New Delhi has allowed the CBI to retain "crucial materials", sent by the UAE government in pursuance of a Letter Rogatory, against arms dealer Suresh Nanda in the Rs 1,150 crore Barak Anti-Missile System deal case.

Special CBI Judge R K Yadav, allowed the plea of the agency that the materials sent by the UAE were needed for further probe in the case, involving former Defence Minister George Fernandes and the then Naval Chief Admiral Susheel Kumar as co-accused.

However, the court asked the CBI to attach the documents at the time filing of chargesheet.

"Considering all facts and the expediency of the probe, it is ordered that material received in pursuance of Letter Rogatory may be retained by the investigating agency and be submitted in the court at the time of filing of chargesheet and report under Section 173 of the CrPC," the judge said.

Earlier, the court issued Letters Rogatory to the United Kingdom, Mauritius, the UAE and Germany seeking their help in collecting evidence against Nanda, businessman and son of former Naval Chief Admiral S M Nanda, who is alleged to have received over Rs 450 crore as kickbacks in the deal.

The probe agency, through an application, informed the court that the authorities at UAE responded by sending some documents which it wanted to keep with it, which was allowed.

Fernandes and the then Naval chief Admiral Sushil Kumar are also accused in the case in which, according to the CBI, Nanda had paid money to the then Samta Party treasurer R K Jain.