SC dismisses petition filed
by Shanti Bhushan & Prashant Bhushan, seeking constitution of Special
Investigation Team, directing investigation of the allegedly incriminating
material seized in CBI/tax department raids conducted on Birla & Sahara
group of companies; Mr. Bhushan argued that during the raids, e-mails and excel
sheets were found that showed payment of cash to several important 'public'
figures; Apex Court cites ratio in V.C. Shukla/Jain Hawala diaries case,
wherein the court held that entires in loose papers/sheets are irrelevant and
not admissible under Sec. 34 of Evidence Act and only where entries are in
books of accounts/regularly kept, those are admissible; Further cites V.C.
Shukla ratio to drive home the point that entires in books of account alone
shall not constitute sufficient evidence to implicate a person since the same
is only "corroborative" evidence; SC observes that the judiciary
ought to be cautious while ordering investigation against any important
constitutional functionary/officers in the absence of "prima facie
reliable/legally cognizable material" which are not supported by 'other
circumstances'; Holds that "..... In case we do so, the investigation can
be ordered as against any person whosoever high in integrity on the basis of
irrelevant or inadmissible entry falsely made, by any unscrupulous person or
business house that too not kept in regular books of accounts but on random
papers at any given point of time."; As for Sahara raids, SC refers
to Settlement Commission order dated November 11, 2016 wherein the Commission
recorded a finding that transactions noted in the documents were not genuine
and did not attach any evidentiary value to the pen drive, hard disk, computer
loose papers, computer printouts; SC concludes " ... it would not be
legally justified, safe, just and proper to direct investigation, keeping in
view principles laid down in the cases of Bhajan Lal and V.C. Shukla.":SC
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