Mr Sukh Ram, former Telecom Minister, hascited his cardiac ailment and hospitalisation not to surrender before a Delhi court on Thursday for undergoing three years' imprisonment in a 1996 telecom scam.

However, former Director with the Telecom Department Ms Runu Ghosh and the Managing Director of Advanced Radio Masts (ARM), Mr P. Rama Rao, surrendered before the Special CBI Court to serve their prison term of two years and three years, respectively.

The special judge Mr Dharmesh Sharma said the plea of Mr Sukh Ram — regarding taking him into judicial custody at the hospital — will be taken up on Friday by the concerned Special CBI Judge, Mr Sanjiv Jain. This was because Mr Jain was on leave on Thursday.

Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court asked Mr Sukh Ram and the two others to surrender before the Special Court on Thursday in compliance with the Delhi High Court's December 21, 2011, order. The apex court said it would hear their plea only after their surrender. The three had moved the apex court seeking a stay on the High Court order.

The scam was regarding Mr Sukh Ram and Ms Ghosh allegedly acting in conspiracy between themselves and with ARM, and by abusing their position as public servants to show undue favour to the company in awarding a contract for supplying telecom equipment to the Government, to in turn make wrongful financial gains from it.

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