Court frowns on adjournments in Mayawati assets’ case

NEW DELHI - The Supreme Court Monday suspected complicity between the central government and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati in seeking frequent adjournments in a case related to her disproportionate assets.

“This is a 2008 case. Every time it gets listed, one of the parties files an application or the other seeks an adjournment on the ground of filing a reply,” said an apex court bench of Justice B. Sudershan Reddy and Justice S.S. Nijjar.

“If both of you are together then let the writ petition go,” Justice Reddy said.

The moment the case was called, the counsel for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) told the court that Attorney General Goolam Vahanvati was on his way and would be in the court at any moment.

At this, counsel for Mayawati told the court that they have filed an application and the matter could be adjourned as the other side would require time to file its reply.

It was at this juncture that Justice Reddy pointed to the sequence of adjournments.

Instead of adjourning the case as sought by counsel for the chief minister, the court passed over the matter to be called later.

However, when the matter again came up for hearing it was adjourned by six weeks so that the central government could file its reply to the application moved by Mayawati.

Mayawati had earlier alleged that case against her was illegal and the CBI was pursuing the case under directions of its political bosses.

During the last hearing, the CBI denied the charge saying the first information report (FIR) in the matter was registered on the directions of the apex court.

The CBI told the court that various status reports were filed before it and the validity of the FIR in the case was upheld by the Allahabad High Court by its order dated Oct 22, 2003.