Hearings in the 2G spectrum scam at the special trial court in the capital?s Patiala House were becoming a bit of a drag since the recording began of the statements of witnesses and their cross-examination by the defence counsel began from November 10 onwards.
But this boredom ended when, during the latter half of December, the recording of Aseervatham Achari, former telecom minister A Raja?s former additional private secretary (APS), began. Achari is the Central Bureau of Investigation?s (CBI) prime witness as he has testified on the conspiracy angle, stating that Swan?s Shahid Balwa and Unitech?s Sanjay Chandra knew and used to meet Raja from his environment ministry days. He also testified about how Raja called him one late evening at his residence to urgently draft a letter to reply to the concerns expressed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on granting new licences.
In court, Achari, a person of medium height, wheatish complexion, maintained a visibly calm disposition, until the hostile defence lawyers nagged him with nasty questions, even casting aspersions on his credibility. Questions such as, ?Did you become a witness because you have a case of disproportionate assets against you?, and the one which the illustrious lawyer Ram Jethmalani posed, ? then how does your wife possess a phone worth lakhs of rupees?, did get him tense. However, still , with his eyes wide open he furiously denied any such accusations. So much so that he humbled Jethmalani on the allegation of his phone being very costly by producing all the bills proving that it was for mere R4,000!
At times, when he had had enough for the moment, Achari simply drank some water and sat down on the chair in the witness box.
The other interesting bit came when Raja?s counsel started his cross examination. The question put to him was that he turned hostile towards Raja and became a witness for CBI because Raja denied him a chance to get into politics.
The most dramatic event?akin to any Bollywood film?took place on December 23. That day, a rather tense looking Achari told the court that his life was in danger and the person who had come to his house and threatened his life was sitting in the court next to one of the accused, RK Chandolia, Raja?s former private secretary. That left Chandolia to squirm. The person pointed out by Achari ran out of the court only to be nabbed by the policemen and later questioned by them in custody.
Achari?s cross examination will continue and it promises not only to be interesting but also to throw up more surprises like the one on January 3, when the CBI alleged that there has been a forged complaint against him on an MP?s letterhead.
