A Delhi court on Monday allowed Swan Telecom promoter Shahid Usman Balwa, sent to the Tihar Jail for his alleged role in 2G spectrum allocation scam, to participate in its proceedings through videoconferencing.
The ex-Telecom Minister, A. Raja, was also granted a similar plea earlier. Special CBI Judge O.P. Saini allowed Mr. Balwa's plea to appear before the court through videoconferencing.
“The remand proceeding of accused Shahid Usman Balwa shall be conducted through the facility of videoconferencing on March 17 without him being physically brought to the court from Tihar Jail,” the court said.
Mr. Balwa and Mr. Raja will appear before the court on Thursday, while the former Telecom Secretary, Siddhartha Behura, and Mr. Raja's personal secretary R.K. Chandolia would be brought to the court after their judicial custody ends. Mr. Balwa's counsel Vijay Aggarwal submitted before the court that his client was suffering from severe backache and considering his medical condition he should be allowed to appear through videoconferencing. The CBI's prosecutor did not oppose the plea.
