2G Scam: Finally Raja arrested by CBI, after Karunanidhi visit to Delhi

Former telecom minister A Raja has been arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the 2G spectrum scam case. Raja was arrested in new Delhi on Wednsday afternoon along with his personal secretary RK Chandolia and former telecom secretary Siddharth Behuria.

Raja has been arrested under sections 120B, 13(2), 13(1D) of Prevention of Corruption Act on the charges of criminal misconduct, violation of policies and favouring some specific companies during the grant of 2G spectrum licences.

He has been arrested just two days after Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK supremo M Karunanidhi met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi.

Earlier on Wednesday morning Raja was quizzed by the investigating agency for the fourth time at the CBI headquarters in New Delhi.

CBI sleuths quizzed him about the role of some of his kin in a few offshoot companies of these telecom firms besides the flow of funds.

The CBI on Tuesday quizzed Raja's brother and a close associate in connection with the Rs 22,000 crore 2G spectrum scam.

Official sources said Raja's brother, A Kaliya Perumal, was questioned for over seven hours at the agency's headquarters. They said a close associate of Raja was also questioned.

Though officials were tight-lipped about the line of questioning, sources said, Perumal was questioned on certain financial transactions and his dealings with certain firms.

Raja was forced to resign on November 14, 2009 in the wake of a Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report which held that the spectrum allocation at undervalued prices resulted in a notional loss of Rs 1.76 lakh crore to the state exchequer.

Raja got the telecom portfolio on May 18, 2007 and was re-elected as a Member of the 15th Lok Sabha and continued as telecom minister from May 31, 2009, till November 14, 2010 before he tendered his resignation.

The Supreme Court has asked the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate to submit status reports on their investigations into the 2G spectrum case to it by February 10 when the case will come up for further hearing.

In its FIR, CBI mentioned the loss as Rs 22,000 crore based on CVC findings which had referred the case to it.