Today, the Supreme Court adjourned the hearings for the appeals submitted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) challenging the exoneration of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and other individuals involved in the SNC Lavalin Case.

A bench consist of Justices Surya Kant, Dipankar Datta and Ujjal Bhuyyan adjourned the hearing following a request for passover made on behalf of Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, who represents the CBI.

The  counsel representing the Additional Solicitor General (ASG) informed the court that the ASG was presently occupied with another case and requested a passover. However, the court declined the passover request and instead opted to adjourn the matter.

This case revolved around to allegations of corruption in the contract awarded to the Canadian company SNC Lavalin for the refurbishment of hydro-electric projects in Kerala during the tenure of Pinarayi Vijayan, who served as the electricity minister from 1996 to 1998.

Back in 2013, Special CBI Court at Thiruvanathapuram discharged Pinarayi Vijayan and few other officials who were chargesheeted in the case. Earlier, this matter was under the jurisdiction of a division bench consisting of Justice M R Shah and Justice C T Ravikumar. However, Justice C T Ravikumar, who had previously served as a judge in the Kerala High Court, recused himself from the case due to his prior involvement in the hearings at the Kerala High Court.

Case Title: Kasthuri Ranga v. State Rep. By Addl. Superintendent Of Police CBI And Ors.