The Portugal high court had last month ordered extradition of the underworld don to face trial in the serial blasts that rocked Mumbai in 1993.
Natarajan Chandrasekaran, credited with stabilising Tata Sons after a boardroom coup and overseeing significant expansion, has announced his resignation as chairman, capping a nearly decade-long tenure marked by both successes and escalating tensions with the group's controlling charitable trusts.
Hardening further its stand on 'Modigate', the Congress on Tuesday demanded a Supreme Court-monitored special investigation team probe into the "scandal".
India has approached Portugal's Supreme Court, challenging its high court order which had terminated the extradition of underworld don Abu Salem for breach of agreement by India, which has slapping charges which may attract death penalty. India, in its appeal before the Portuguese Supreme Court, has said the interpretation of the high court of the trial in various courts of the country was not correct.
Believed to be underworld don Abu Salem's girlfriend, the former actress had sought asylum in Portugal claiming she would face 'discrimination' by the Indian government as she belonged to a minority community.
The Bombay High Court stated that gangster Abu Salem has not yet completed 25 years in jail in India, as mandated by his extradition from Portugal. Salem sought release, claiming his term was complete with remission, but the court found the 25-year period incomplete based on his arrest date.
A special TADA court in Mumbai on Tuesday rejected the application of gangster Abu Salem, seeking closure of his trial, after the Central Bureau of Investigation said it had challenged the order of Portugal supreme court, which had terminated his extradition to India in that country's constitutional court.
India has got a breather with the constitutional court of Portugal staying the order of its Supreme Court on violation of extradition agreement of underworld don Abu Salem by New Delhi by slapping new charges invoking death penalty.
Portugal's Supreme Court has rejected a Central Bureau of Investigation appeal against a lower court decision which had held that rules have been breached on extradition of underworld don Abu Salem by slapping of new charges that attract death penalty.
The debate over working hours flared up after Infosys Co-founder N R Narayana Murthy called for 14-hour workdays.
The CBI, India's nodal agency for extradition cases, has moved Portugal's Constitutional Court against the Supreme Court's recent ruling confirming the decision to terminate the extradition of Salem in 2005 to face trial in various cases.
Hearing an application filed by Salem in which the gangster sought to be recalled claiming that the extradition conditions are being violated, Portugal's apex court said that his claims are yet to be ascertained. It, however, gave a clear warning to India that future requests will not be entertained easily if Salem's claim of violation of the conditions is found to be true.
Portugal's supreme court has stayed a trial court order rejecting an Indian government request to extradite underworld don Abu Salem's girlfriend Monica Bedi.
Underworld don Abu Salem will remain in India as the top Portugal Court has observed that it was not obliged to extradite the gangster back to the European country after it was held there was violation of deportation rules by Indian authorities.
The Supreme Court held that the verdict of Portugal court is "not binding" on courts here and Salem's extradition to India is still "valid in the eyes of law".
India will approach the constitutional court of Portugal challenging the decision of that country's supreme court which recently confirmed the decision to terminate the extradition of fugitive underworld don Abu Salem to face trial in various cases in India.
According to the order, India could try Salem only for offences like forging passports, smuggling arms into Mumbai and not for heinous crimes like causing activities leading to death of civilians as in the case of the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts.
It has filed an appeal before the Portugal Supreme Court challenging the rejection of its plea for extradition of Monica Bedi by a local court.
Special Public Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam had initially demanded the death penalty
A constitutional court of Portugal rejected the review petition of underworld don Abu Salem's girlfriend Monica Bedi against her extradition.
The lawyer submitted that even though the TADA court had held that it was not bound by the assurances of the government, the top court has the power to decide the issue.
The government is bound by the assurance given by the then deputy prime minister L K Advani to the Portugal government that the maximum sentence handed out to gangster Abu Salem will not exceed 25 years, the Union home secretary has told the Supreme Court.
The official communication was received by the Central Bureau of Investigation today, sources said in New Delhi
Salem had said his sentence could not exceed 25 years as per a solemn assurance given by India to Portugal for his extradition in 2002.
The Portugal supreme court told a trial court to resume extradition proceedings of the companion of underworld don Abu Salem to India.
The Central Bureau of Investigation is likely to seek from the Supreme Court withdrawal of charges of organised crime against 1993 Mumbai blast accused Abu Salem after receiving legal opinion on the issue.
Gangster Abu Salem, who survived bid on his life in a Navi Mumbai jail last month, will move the European Union seeking execution of the order canceling his extradition to India issued by the Portuguese constitutional court.
Gangster Abu Salem has denied in his statement before the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act court in Mumbai that he went to the house of Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt.
A chronology of events in the case in which the main trial ended in 2007.
Abu Salem and two other accused were convicted in the 1995 murder case of city-based builder Pradeep Jain.
The Supreme Court on Thursday took strong exception of an affidavit filed by the Union home secretary on a plea by gangster Abu Salem, challenging his life imprisonment in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case, and said it is an "attempt to lecture the judiciary".
Observing that the order of Portugal court terminating the extradition of Abu Salem to India has to be respected, the Supreme Court on Friday stayed the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act proceedings in two cases against the alleged gangster.
The Supreme Court on Monday granted two weeks to the Centre to analyse a Portugal court's order -- terminating the extradition of Abu Salem to India -- and spell out its proposed action against the alleged gangster. A bench headed by Justice P Sathasivam granted the time after Attorney General G E Vahanwati submitted that the government needs time to go through the judgment as the order is in Portuguese language and has to be first translated in English.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld the conviction of actress Monika Bedi, girlfriend of underworld don Abu Salem, in the fake passport case, but reduced her sentence to the period of jail term she had already undergone. A bench of justices B Sudershan Reddy and S S Nijjar rejected Monika's plea that she could not be convicted in India as it would amount to 'double jeopardy' since she had been convicted by the Portugal court for the same offence.
Former World Player of Year Luis Figo has been ordered to pay around 2.4 million euros in income tax to the Spanish government from his time as a Barcelona player, the country's supreme court ruled on Wednesday.
In a significant ruling, the Supreme Court on Friday said that underworld don Abu Salem can be tried for offences inviting death penalty even though the Portugal government had laid a pre-condition that he will not be extradited if he was to be awarded capital punishment.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday reserved its order on gangster Abu Salem plea for quashing trials against him in various cases after the Portugal court terminated his extradition to India for "violation" of deportation rules by authorities.
