New Delhi:
For years, their worldview was formed from the very top of the corporate ladder. The five executives who are now in Tihar Jail for their alleged roles in the 2G spectrum scam will spend the next five days in small jail cells.
Sanjay Chandra of Unitech Wireless, Vinod Goenka of Swan Telecom, and three executives of the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) - Gautam Doshi, Hari Nair and Surendra Pipara - were taken into custody yesterday after a special court assigned to hear the 2G case refused them bail.
They are all accused of cheating. Their firms were allegedly favoured by former Telecom Minister A Raja who is also in jail for giving them spectrum and mobile network licenses at clearance prices in 2008.
The executives have applied for bail in the Delhi High Court. Their cases will be heard on Tuesday.
"He doesn't know any other person in jail...He didn't even have a toothbrush or a teacup in the morning... We had requested the court to allow him to take his spectacles and medicines inside...the Court didn't allow it," said Mr Goenka's lawyer, Vijay Aggarwal.
Each of the executives is in a 12 foot by 10 foot cell. For dinner, they will get one sabzi, dal and rotis. They will sleep on the floor - each has received two bedsheets and one blanket.
Mr Chandra of Unitech Wireless was asked yesterday to step down as Chairman by his foreign partner, Telenor. His lawyer said today that since he has nothing to do with the firms that won 2G licenses from Mr Raja, he should not be in jail.
The lawyer for Mr Nair argued that for his bail on the grounds that he's the sole breadwinner for his family and has a 4-year-old daughter and an old mother to look after.
Mr Goenka's lawyer said that his business partner at Swan - Shahid Balwa - has already been arrested, so Mr Goenka needs to attend to their business.