In a new twist in Sahara-SEBI case on the issue of refund of investors’ money, Subrata Roy today moved the Supreme Court challenging its order for detaining him for not depositing Rs 20,000 crore with the market regulator.
Appearing before a Bench headed by Chief Justice P. Sathasivam, senior advocate Ram Jethmalani pleaded that the court should give an urgent hearing in the case as it pertains to Habeas Corpus.
A writ of Habeas Corpus is used to bring a prisoner or other detainee before the court to determine if the person’s imprisonment or detention is lawful.
Jethmalani, appearing for Roy, submitted that “there is some defect which needs to be cured urgently” and pleaded the court to hear him at 2 pm.
The apex court will hear Roy’s plea against his detention tomorrow.
The Sahara chief and his two directors Ravi Shankar Dubey and Ashok Roy Choudhary were sent to judicial custody on March 4 by a special Bench of justices KS Radhakrishnan and JS Khehar for not depositing the amount of Rs 20,000 crore with SEBI.
On the last date of hearing on March 7, the apex court had asked the Sahara group to come out with “honourable proposal” for depositing Rs 20,000 crore of investors money and posted the hearing on March 11.
The matter was then posted for hearing on March 11 but the case got adjourned with no date of further hearing specified.
The special Bench had earlier expressed unhappiness over the proposal of Sahara on the refund of investors’ money.
It had rejected Sahara’s proposal which had offered to pay Rs 2,500 crore within three days and the rest of the amount in five instalments by the end of July, 2015.