Earlier I blogged on the fact that Dayanidhi maran, former Telecom Minister and Grand nephew of DMK Supremeo, Karunanidhi and Brother of Kalaanidhi Maran who controls SUN TV Group.
Now the CBI has deposed before the JPC that it has evidence that Dayanidhi Maran had received the Bribe from Astro All Asia Net Woks Plc-Rs. 549.96 Crore by way of investment in SUN DTH at an inflated rate.
Astro All Asia Net Woks Plc is a related company of Maxis Communication.
CBI is reported to have quizzed Dayanidhi Maran last week on this and he is reported to have replied in writing.
What is of note is that this action comes just after The Presidential Election and new alignments are in the offing for the next General Elections.
Story:
The CBI has recently questioned the former Telecom Minister Dayanidhi Maran in connection with a case against him, his brother Kalanithi Maran and Malaysian business tycoon and head of Maxis Communications T. Ananda Krishnan of allegedly coercing the former owner of Aircel Televentures C. Sivasankaran into selling his equity in Aircel.
Mr. Dayanidhi Maran allegedly denied Mr. Sivasankaran’s firm seven pending 2G spectrum licences in various circles, and the Point of Interconnection facility from the state-owned BSNL.
The CBI alleged that an illegal gratification of Rs. 549.96 crore accrued to the Maran brothers from the purchase of Sun Direct TV shares by Astro All Asia Networks Plc, a related company of Maxis Communications, allegedly at a “highly inflated” rate.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article3688410.ece
Related.
Tehelka exposed the shenanigans of Maran and Maran has come out with a defense ‘ there was no loss to the government during his tenure as Union telecom minister, Maran said he was not even a minister when Astroinvested in Sun TV Network. “I own no shares or interest in Sun TV Network,” .
He is said to have issued notice to Tehelka, which is nothing but legal non sense with no substance and facts…..
Is Ananda Krishnan a front for Maran?
Facts seem to speak differently.
According to sources, the CBI has now trained its guns on a strikingly similar deal — though the quantum is almost four times that of the Balwa-Kalaignar transaction — between Sun TV Group, owned by the family of Union Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran, and Malaysian business conglomerate Maxis Group and owner of 74 percent direct equity in Aircel Group, the country’s seventh biggest telecom operator….
In November 2006, then Telecom Minister Maran granted 14 (UASL) for Aircel. The licence, along with the startup 2G spectrum, was awarded at the same price at which later Raja gave away 2G licenses to Swan, Unitech and a host of other players in 2008 — Aircel paid Rs 1,399 crore for 14 telecom circles, the price was arrived at through an auction process in 2001 when the telecom industry was in its nascent stage.
The telecom licences to Aircel were awarded after about two years of ‘unwarranted’ delay on the part of the DoT headed by Maran at the time. Aircel’s applications for new circles were pending since Maran’s takeover as minister for communications and IT in May 2004. According to the report prepared by the one-man committee of Justice (retired) Shivraj Patil constituted to examine the appropriateness of procedures followed by DoT in issuing licences during the period 2001-2009, the DoT kept raising ‘irrelevant’, ‘vague’ and ‘unwarranted’ queries about different aspects related to Aircel and kept the applications pending (Patil submitted his report to present Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal on 31 January)….
It was only after March 2006, when Malaysian business tycoon T Ananda Krishnan, whose parents were Sri Lankan Tamils, bought 74 percent stake in Aircel, that its file gained momentum. Until then the company was owned by C Sivasankaran, the chairman of Siva Group (earlier known as Sterling Infotech Group). Krishnan paid Rs 3,390.82 crore for 74 percent equity in Aircel. Today, Aircel is the seven biggest telecom operator in the country with its net worth valued in the range of $7.5-$8 billion…”
http://ramanisblog.in/2011/06/01/2g-scam-leads-to-sun-tv-maran-and-aircell/
Related articles
- JPC grills CBI: why clean chit to PM, Chidambaram? (thehindu.com)
- Report: Maxis looks to exit India (zdnet.com)
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