COMMENTARY
SPECIALS
INTERVIEWS
CAPITAL BUZZ
REDIFF POLL
DEAR REDIFF
THE STATES
YEH HAI INDIA!
ARCHIVES

Chandra Swami tried to blackmail V P Singh

The Central Bureau of Investigation yesterday disclosed before the Delhi high court that controversial tantrik Chandra Swami wanted to blackmail former prime minister V P Singh soon after a ''forged bank account'' was opened in the name of Singh's son, Ajeya Singh, on St Kitt's island in the Caribbean.

CBI counsel P R Vakil submitted before Justice Anil Dev Singh that former Union minister Arif Mohammed Khan, in his statement recorded before the trial court, had said that in mid-1989 Chandra Swami called him to his ashram and showed him documents relating to the forged bank account.

Khan had said that Chandra Swami apparently wanted him to show the documents to V P Singh to frighten him and malign him, Vakil submitted.

Khan also stated that he met Singh and told him about the documents. ''Ask Chandra Swami to make the documents public,'' Singh told Khan.

The former Union minister also submitted before the trial court that he had told Chandra Swami that V P Singh's signatures on certain documents appeared to be forged as they were in English. ''Singh used to sign documents in Hindi.''

The tantrik, however, ignored the minister, saying, ''why should Singh sign the documents in Hindi abroad?''

The court was hearing two criminal revision petitions filed by the CBI and the People's Union for Civil Liberties against the discharge of former prime minister P V Narasimha Rao and former Union minister K K Tewary by Special Judge Ajit Bharihoke in the case.

EARLIER REPORT:
CBI blames Rao for St Kitts

Tell us what you think of this report