In a major setback to the CBi (Central Bureau of Investigation) team probing the multi-crore Satyam scam, the 3 separate charge-sheets it had filed in the sensational case will be clubbed together.
This was revealed by an order of the Special Court that heard the accounting scam on Wednesday.
The 3 charge-sheets were filed against the disgraced former chairman of Satyam Computers, Ramalinga Raju. The charge-sheets pertain to the fudging of funds to the tune of Rs. 14,000 crore, and Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA) and income tax violations as well.
The CBI had earlier pleaded against the clubbing of the charge-sheets, while Ramalinga Raju's counsel had argued that the cases in the 3 chargesheets were interrelated and cannot be separated.
The CBI's plea was overruled by Magistrate B V L N Chakravarti, during the hearing of the case.
Justice Chakravarti said that the burden on the public exchequer would be reduced if the charge-sheets are consolidated, and that this would also lessen the number appearances to be made by witnesses before the court.
The court is also expected to deliver its verdict on the CBI plea seeking Raju's examination through video-conferencing, on June 25.