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First Global's Sharma alleges harassment

A division bench of the Bombay high court will hear on September 3 a petition filed by promoter of First Global Shankar Sharma, praying for quashing of various actions taken against him and his company by different government agencies like Income-Tax, Securities and Exchange Board of India and Enforcement Directorate.

Sharma has alleged that actions taken by Sebi, Income-Tax and ED against him were an "orchestrated" effort by the government to harass him because of his stake in Tehelka.com, which had earlier exposed alleged corruption in defence deals.

According to Sharma, Sebi had banned his firm from trading at the Bombay Stock Exchange, I-T had raided his premises and that of his company while ED was probing his investments in a Mauritius firm.

When the matter came up for hearing on August 6 before justices R M Lodha and Dilip Bhosale, counsel for Income Tax, Beni Chatterji, sought time on the ground that Solicitor General Harish Salve was to address the court on that issue.

The judges adjourned the matter to September 3 with a direction that further adjournments would not be allowed.

The request for adjournment from the government side was opposed by Sharma's counsel Aspi Chinoy as he wanted the matter to go on.

The counsel also told the court that former Union Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha was personally a party in the petition and had so far not filed an affidavit in reply.

However, Chatterji argued that this point was raised in the affidavit of Sharma and it was replied by the government in its rejoinder.

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