Source :BL: PTI:NEW DELHI/CHENNAI:Wednesday, December 8, 2010
The Central Bureau of Investigation today carried out searches at the residences of the former Telecom Minister, Mr A. Raja, in Delhi and Chennai besides carrying out raids at the premises of four other telecom officials, including his personal secretary, Mr R.K. Chandolia, in connection with the Rs 22,000-crore 2G spectrum scam.
CBI sleuths began the searches in the wee hours of the morning in Delhi and Chennai at the residences of 47-year-old Raja, who was forced to resign as minister on November 14 in the wake of CAG’s report that the rate at which 2G spectrum was allotted res ulted in a possible loss to the exchequer to the tune of Rs 1.76 lakh crore.
Raids were also carried out at the residences of former Telecom Secretary, Mr Siddarth Behura, Mr Chandolia, Member-Telecom Commission, Mr K. Sridhar, and the Deputy Director-General in the Department of Telecom, Mr A.K. Srivastava, CBI sources said.
Mr Raja has been maintaining that he was ready for questioning by the CBI any time.
The CBI sources said that the former minister would also be questioned during the process of searches.
The Supreme Court had come down heavily on the CBI on November 22 for failing to question Mr Raja and the Telecom Secretary in connection with the scam, saying it was “beating around the bush’’.
A Bench of Mr Justices G.S. Singhvi and Mr A.K. Ganguly wondered why the premier investigating agency failed to question the duo despite the CVC and CAG report sharply indicting them for their involvement.
“Any responsible person will question the involvement of the minister and the secretary and you (CBI) say that 8,000 documents have been examined. You are beating around the bush.
It was (questioning) minimum expected of the CBI. What do you take this court for,” the Bench had observed during the argument. —
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