New Delhi: Former Telecom Minister A Raja
was today questioned for nine hours during which the DMK
leader was quizzed on the controversial preponement of dates
for allocation of spectrum and alleged funding of some of the
telecom companies by his kin.
47-year-old Raja was confronted with some documents
recovered by the agency during its raids on Department of
Telecom offices in October last year after registering a case
against unknown officers of DoT and telecom companies,
official sources said tonight.
New Delhi: Former Telecom Minister A Raja
was today questioned for nine hours during which the DMK
leader was quizzed on the controversial preponement of dates
for allocation of spectrum and alleged funding of some of the
telecom companies by his kin.
47-year-old Raja was confronted with some documents
recovered by the agency during its raids on Department of
Telecom offices in October last year after registering a case
against unknown officers of DoT and telecom companies,
official sources said tonight.
The questioning of Raja came days after his residences
here and in Tamil Nadu were searched by the CBI.
While Raja, a DMK MP from Nilgris, was allowed to go
home today, sources in the agency said that he would be called
again during which he would be confronted with some more
questions and documents recovered from the computers seized
during the raids conducted by the agency earlier.
Emerging out of the CBI headquarters after his
questioning, Raja put up a brave face, saying that he had
cooperated with the CBI.
"I gave full cooperation to the investigating agencies.
I can`t say anything further because investigations are on,"
he said facing hordes of newsmen and photographers before he
got into his car.
Raja, who had flown in from Chennai on Wednesday,
appeared before the agency headquarters at 10.30 am after he
was summoned under Section 160 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
CBI spokesperson and DIG Bineeta Thakur said Raja was
"questioned in relation to the case registered into the
allocation of unified access service licenses." She refused to
elaborate.
Raja, who had earlier expressed his inability to appear
before the agency, was questioned at length on the
circumstances leading to spectrum allocation which has been
criticised severely by Central Vigilance Commission and the
Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG).
CBI also quizzed him on the tapped conversation he had
with corporate lobbyist Niira Radia about allegedly favouring
certain telecom companies, the sources said, adding some of
the questions were also posed to him about alleged investments
made by some of his kins in some telecom companies.
Raja was forced to resign on November 14 in the wake of
the CAG report which held that the spectrum allocation at
undervalued prices resulted in a notional loss of Rs.1.76 lakh
crore to the exchequer.
He was also questioned on the issue of advancing dates
for allocation of spectrum and on the role of his relatives in
some of the companies which allegedly acted as a front for
certain telecom firms which got spectrum between September
2007 and January 2008.
Raja got the telecom portfolio on May 18, 2007 and again
got re-elected as a Member of the 15th Lok Sabha and continued
as Telecom Minister from May 31, 2009 till November 14, this
year before he tendered his resignation.
-PTI
