The CBI on Friday opposed the bail plea of former communications minister A. Raja, a key accused in the 2G spectrum allocation case, in a special court here saying it had recently come to light that he received a bribe of `200 crore along with some others and his involvement in a case related to a Mauritius-based firm was being probed.
CBI prosecutor A.K. Singh told Justice O.P. Saini that according to investigators, Mr Raja received a bribe of `200 crore along with some other public servants.
He said the agency was also investigating his links with Mauritius-based Delphi Investment Ltd, to which the shares of Reliance Telecom Ltd had allegedly been transferred.
“This court had issued letters rogatory for a suspected bribe amount from Reliance (RTL) through Delphi. This accused (Mr Raja) and other public servants are also involved in another tranche of `200 crore which they have received as bribe. This was not known earlier and has come up during the investigation,” he said.
The prosecutor said since the probe in the Delphi case is going on, Mr Raja might tamper with evidence and influence witnesses if released on bail at this stage. He also said while cancelling 122 licences granted during the tenure of Mr Raja in 2008, the Supreme Court had termed the policy applied by him as “unconstitutional”.
The court reserved its order on Mr Raja’s plea for May 15 after his counsel Ramesh Gupta concluded his arguments.
Mr Gupta, pressing for bail for his client, told the court that all other accused in the case, including public servants, have been granted bail and Mr Raja’s bail plea should also be allowed on the principle of parity. The probe in the case has been completed and charge sheets have been filed by the CBI so no useful purpose would be served by keeping Mr Raja in custody, he said. Mr Raja, who stood next to his counsel throughout the arguments, was accompanied by his wife, daughter, relatives and a number of supporters.
Senior DMK leader T.R. Baalu was also present in the court.