Hailing the Supreme Court verdict in 2G case, L K Advani on Wednesday wondered if former telecom minister A Raja could be the sole "villain" and said no one can beat the United Progressive Alliance government, which is "actually run" by Sonia Gandhi, in its "stinking record" in scams.
Former Telecom Minister A Raja's private secretary R K Chandolia had threatened several senior telecom ministry officials to ensure grant of spectrum to Swan Telecom which was ineligible for getting the spectrum licence, Central Bureau of Investigation said on Saturday in its chargesheet on 2G scam.
The only way of making the government and the Congress pay a price for their established misdeeds is by making this an electoral issue, says B Raman
'Raja had conquered Tihar jail', read the slogans, apparently referring to his incarceration and release from the Delhi prison where he was lodged for 15 months after he was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation
Continuing its probe in the 2G spectrum allocation scam, the Central Bureau of Investigation questioned two top telecom honchos besides close aides of former Telecom Minister A Raja, including his brother Kalia Perumal. The agency quizzed chief executive officer of Loop Telecom Sandip Basu and chairman of Sistema Shyam Teleservices Rajiv Mehrotra in connection with the scam, official sources said.
Kalia Perumal, brother of former telecom minister A Raja, was on Wednesday questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation in connection with the 2G spectrum case.
The proposal gains significance because the merger plan was given a quiet burial under former telecom minister A Raja.
As former telecom minister A Raja secured bail in the 2G spectrum case, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Tuesday said the case appeared to be getting "diluted". Jayalalithaa was replying to a question from reporters on a Delhi court granting bail to Raja, the prime accused in the case, 15 months after he was sent to jail.
On the apprehension of the CBI that if granted bail Raja may influence witnesses and tamper with evidence, the court said it addressed them by imposing conditions and restrictions on the accused.
The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Tuesday welcomed the decision of a Delhi court to grant bail to former telecom minister A Raja, who was arrested 15 months ago in connection with the 2G spectrum scam.
Reacting to questions on advancing the cutoff date of receiving applications for 2 G spectrum, former telecom minister A Raja's lawyer, Sushil Kumar, said, "My (Raja's) secretary told me that there were 575 applications in total for 2 G spectrums and it was not possible to process all of them."
With the Central Bureau of Investigation seeking revocation of his close aide Balkrishna's passport, yoga guru Ramdev on Monday targeted Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and Home Minister P Chidambaram demanding action against them following former telecom minister A Raja's statement in court that 2G allocation was done with their consent.
Bharatiya Janata Party president Nitin Gadkari on Monday demanded the resignations of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Home Minister P Chidambaram in the wake of former telecom minister A Raja's claim that both of them were aware of his decisions about the 2G auction.
Former Telecom Minister A Raja on Monday defended himself against corruption charges in the 2G scam, saying he had not done anything wrong and was merely following the policies pursued by his predecessors and the National Democratic Alliance government.
Two days after getting bail from the Supreme Court in the 2G case, former Telecom Secretary Siddharth Behura was on Friday released from the Tihar jail after a lapse of over 15 months since his arrest.
The Central Bureau of Investigation on Friday opposed in a Delhi court the bail plea of former telecom minister A Raja, arrested for his alleged role in the 2G spectrum allocation case last year, saying the agency is probing an allegation that the DMK minister got Rs 200 crore in bribe. CBI prosecutor A K Singh opposed Raja's bail plea, saying there is a new allegation that he has received Rs 200 crore as bribe and this angle is being investigated.
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam president M Karunanidhi on Wednesday said the law would take its own course on the bail plea moved by former telecom minister A Raja, an accused in the 2G spectrum scam.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday gave bail to former Telecom Secretary Siddharth Behura, arrested last year on February 2 for his alleged role in the 2G case, and also upheld the bail granted to former Telecom Minister A Raja's ex-Private Secretary R K Chandolia by the trial court.
Former Telecom Minister A Raja, facing trial in the 2G spectrum allocation case, on Wednesday moved a Delhi court for bail saying the case against him is "false and fabricated".
Coming to the defence of Home Minister P Chidambaram, the government on Friday insisted that the former finance minister had "no role anywhere" in the 2G spectrum allocation controversy and demands for his resignation were a "conspiracy" against him.
The Delhi high court on Wednesday stayed its order to shift the trial of the 2G spectrum case accused to the high-security Tihar Jail from Patiala House court in the heart of the national capital.
The Supreme Court has granted bail to five corporate executives in 2G spectrum case.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday alleged that the taped conversation between former Telecom Minister A Raja and corporate lobbyist Niira Radia shows that the then Finance Minister P Chidambaram played a role in the 2G spectrum scam.
The much-awaited trial in the 2G spectrum allocation scam case, involving high-profile accused, including former Telecom Minister A Raja, DMK MP Kanimozhi, top corporate honchos and telecom firms, is likely to commence from Friday before a Delhi court.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has directed all Union ministers to declare their assets and liabilities and indicate their business interests.The prime minister's directions were circulated in a six-page letter to all Union ministers by Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrasekhar on June 2. Dr Singh's direction comes in the wake of Textile Minister Dayanidhi Maran and former telecom minister A Raja getting embroiled in the massive 2G scam.
Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam chief M Karunanidhi's son Tamilarasu and daughter Selvi met their half-sister Kanimozhi, who has been arrested in the 2G spectrum case, at a trial court in New Delhi.
The Central Bureau of Investigation on Wednesday said it had seized "incriminating" documents during searches at 14 places, including former telecom minister A Raja's residence, in connection with its probe into the 2G spectrum scam.
In DMK circles, Raja is seen as the top-most mobiliser of funds for elections. 'The leadership sees him as having done more for the party from Delhi than even Murasoli Maran.'
Former telecom minister A Raja on Friday sought a review of the Supreme Court verdict on cancellation of licenses for 2G spectrum, saying it violates the "principles of natural justice" and "judicial norms" and that he was indicted without being heard. Raja, who has been in jail for more than a year, contended that the findings of the verdict against him are "bound to prejudice" his defence in the trial of the 2G spectrum allocation scam.
Former Telecom Minister A Raja's erstwhile Private Secretary R K Chandolia was today imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 by the Delhi high court for making a plea to it to summon a plethora of documents from the P)rime Minister's Office to help him cross-examine a 2G case witness in the trial court.
A Delhi court on Friday refused permission to jailed former Telecom Minister A Raja to visit and assist his lawyers in the Supreme Court during hearings in the 2G spectrum allocation scam, saying enough time was being granted to him for legal consultations.
Former telecom minister A Raja's plea to witness and assist his counsel during the proceedings in the Supreme Court on the 2G scam case was on Friday dismissed by a Delhi court. Raja, in his application, had sought permission to appear and witness the judicial proceedings in the apex court so that he can assist his lawyer Sushil Kumar there.
Janata Party chief Subramanian Swamy on Thursday moved the Supreme Court to challenge the trial court order which had held that Home Minister P Chidmbaram did not indulge in any criminal conspiracy in the 2G case and refused to make him an accused in it. Swamy has alleged that Chidambaram as culpable as former telecom minister A Raja as he also had a role in deciding the spectrum pricing and allowing telecom companies to off-load shares to foreign firms.
The Public Accounts Committee has, in a draft report on 2G scam, strongly indicted former Telecom minister A Raja and came down heavily on the Prime Minister's Office and the Cabinet Secretariat for not taking "corrective action" while not sparing even the prime minister for "some unfortunate omissions".
The Central Bureau of Investigation on Monday moved a designated special court for slapping the fresh charge of breach of trust by public servants against former Telecom Minister A Raja and two others in the 2G spectrum allocation case.
Against the backdrop of the finance ministry note on 2G spectrum pricing, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, a key United Progressive Alliance ally, on Thursday maintained that the stand taken by jailed former telecom minister A Raja on the issue has been 'vindicated'.
Janata Party chief Subramanian Swamy on Thursday pleaded before a Delhi court that it should bring on record purported new facts that former finance minister P Chidambaram and former telecom minister A Raja had a role in deciding 2G spectrum prices and entry fee. In a fresh application in the court of Special Central Bureau of Investigation judge O P Saini, Swami said he wanted to bring "new facts" on court records through his deposition.
It's not for nothing that Dr Subramanian Swamy is called a maverick. And the maverick was at his best once again while speaking on the 2G scam and its implications in Mumbai, just a day after the trial court judge O P Saini dismissed his petition to make Home Minister P Chidambaram a co-accused with former disgraced telecom minister A Raja in the allocation of the scandal.
In a huge relief to Home Minister P Chidambaram and to the United Progressive Alliance government, a Delhi court on Saturday threw out a plea to make him an accused in the 2G case.
Former Telecom Minister A Raja, the prime accused facing trial in the 2G case, on Thursday completed one year in jail since his arrest in the high-profile scam.
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