The Hindu : Court directive to Govt. on Sachin car case

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Aug 20, 2003

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National

Court directive to Govt. on Sachin car case

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI AUG. 19. The Delhi High Court today directed the Union Government to file within three weeks a reply to a suo motu notice on a customs duty waiver of Rs. 1.13 crores for cricket star, Sachin Tendulkar, on the import of a Ferrari gifted to him abroad.

A Bench comprising Justice B.C. Patel and Justice A.K. Sikri asked the Additional Solicitor-General, K.K. Sud, to state the Government's stand by September 23.

The Court also reissued a notice to Tendulkar for the same date as the earlier one issued on September 13 was not served.

Meanwhile, Arjun Bhandari, a Delhi High Court lawyer whom Justice Vikramjit Sen last week had asked to file a petition in the matter, filed one urging the Court to direct the Government to state the guidelines under which customs duty is waived.

He urged the Court to direct the Government to produce records of the past three years where the duty had been waived for different persons.

Taking suo motu note of the duty exemption on the basis of media reports, Mr. Justice Sen on August 13 issued notices to Tendulkar, the Centre and the Union Finance Ministry.

Mr. Justice Sen had said that the matter was of public importance and warranted examination under the public interest jurisdiction of this court.

The Judge had also observed that the grant of duty exemption exemplified profligacy in spending on cricket and parsimony so far as other games were concerned.

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