The two cases, registered in November 1985, involve the alleged backdating of Letters of Credit of the State Bank of India and Standard Chartered Bank, to enable RIL to import 80,000 mts of purified terepthalic acid (PTA) in OGL, while the Government had decided to amend the policy to bring the item in the limited permissible list.

Reliance CMD Dhirubhai Ambani is also an accused in the case, along with several bank officers. Ambani has also filed a discharge application.

Though the case was filed in 1985, the chargesheets were filed only in 1996. Since then, the case has been adjourned at least on 19 occasions. On the last date of hearing, CBI counsel had submitted an application for taking up the hearing of the case expeditiously.

Today, the CBI had a new counsel. ID Vaid, who represented the CBI, told the court that he wouldreply to the discharge applications filed by the accused in the course of his arguments on the chargesheet. He also requested for an early date.