A special CBI court in Delhi today issued arrest warrants against two Malaysian nationals who are accused of money laundering in Aircel-Maxis deal case. They are T. Ananda Krishnan and Augustus Ralph Marshall.
Special Judge O P Saini also ordered that the trial against former Telecom Minister Dayanidhi Maran and his brother Kalanithi and two accused companies be segregated from two Malaysian nationals. He said their appearance may take long time leading to a delay in proceedings.
The court’s order came on CBI’s plea which had on 1st August one sought issuance of arrest warrants against both the foreign nationals, stating that the summons issued to them could not be served. In the 27-page order, the court noted that the allegations against the accused were serious and the only way left was to approach the Interpol for which issuance of warrant was necessary.
It has been alleged that then telecom minister Dayanidhi Maran had forced Aircel owner C. Sivasankaran to transfer his ownership to Maxis Communications Berhad in 2006. The Malaysian company, in return, invested in Kalanithi Maran’s Sun Direct, the direct-to-home TV arm of his Sun TV Network Limited.