CWG scam | Delhi HC rejects Swiss Timing plea

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed a plea by Swiss Timing to stay a lower court proceeding against them in the Commonwealth Games Time Scoring and Results scam (TSR).

According to the CBI chargesheet against them, sacked CWG Olympic Committee chief Suresh Kalmadi and others escalated the Swiss firm's tender cost, causing a loss of Rs 90 crore to the exchequer.

Swiss Timing had approached the HC saying the CBI had adopted a wrong procedure to execute summons, and therefore, the proceedings could not be allowed.

The TSR scam

The selection process for awarding the TSR contract took around three years. Swiss Timing's first presentation was made one year after the publication of expression of interest and the expression of interest was issued by the then Commonwealth Games Organising Committee secretary general Lalit Bhanot without the knowledge of Games Finance Committee.

Swiss Timing itself recorded Rs 18 crore as escalation cost due to delays. Former Organising Committee director general VK Verma changed the eligibility criteria of the TSR deal without bringing it to the notice of Organising Committee Executive Board.

Kalmadi ensured that the committee formed to approve the TSR deal consisted of those who favoured Swiss Timing. Two officials, VK Gautam and Sujit Panigrahi, were forced to resign from their positions in the Organising Committee as they opposed the choice of Swiss Timing.

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