CBI raids Kalaignar TV offices
18 Feb 2011
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) raided the offices of Kalaignar TV, promoted by DMK chief M. Karunanidhi's wife and daughter, in the early hours of Friday, as part of its widening probe into the 2G scam.
CBI sleuths landed at the Kalaignar TV office in chennai in the early hours of the day and seized some documents.
The agency's anti-corruption unit carried a search warrant issued by a Delhi court. M K Dayalu, the wife of the Tamil Nadu chief minister, and his daughter, Kanimozhi, a Rajya Sabha MP, are promoters of the channel. Dayalu has a 60-per cent stake and Kanimozhi a 20 per cent interest.
The channel was launched by the DMK family after relations with the Marans, who run the hugely popular Sun TV, deteriorated a few years ago. The two families later patched up their ties.
Kalanithi Maran is the owner of Sun TV, while his brother, Dayanidhi, is the textiles minister in the union cabinet. AIADMK chief, and former Tamil Nadu chief minister, J Jayalalitha runs her own Jaya TV.
The CBI, which has to report to the Supreme Court in its investigations into the 2G scam, has been pursuing the money trail from the alleged kickbacks received by some of the licensees, who were favoured by the then telecommunications minister, A. Raja.