Commission of Inquiry into Betamax Affair will take place, says Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has turned down an application from Betamax Ltd and its director, Veekram Bhunjun – both had challenged the setting up of a commission of inquiry by the President of the Republic into what is know as the Betamax Affair.

Veekram Bhunjun and Betamax Ltd’s application was directed to the Attorney General (AG), the Chairperson of the Inquiry Commission, Judge Carol Green-Jokhoo, the two assessors Telkraj Parbhunath and Kodados Mosafeer and the State.

The Director of Public Prosecutions and the State Trading Corporation were named as co-defendants.

In his affidavit, Veekram Bhunjun had stated that the State Trading Corporation and the government of Mauritius had, on June 22, 2021, been found guilty by the Privy Council and had already compensated Betamax (Rs5.7Billion).

Hence, a commission of inquiry would be illegal and tantamount of contempt of court.

However, Supreme Court judges declared that the institution of a commission of inquiry could not be a contempt, because it did not affect the execution of the arbitral award.