CWG fireworks to begin as games end

The Commonwealth Games are over, but the fireworks may have just begun. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has appointed a committee headed by former Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) V K Shunglu to probe the charges of corruption and other irregularities during the games.

The panel has been asked to submit its report within three months to the prime minister. It has the mandate to review every transaction, if needed. Reports say that the government has drawn up a list of over 20 officials whose role in organising and conducting the games will be investigated.

In what may be a harbinger of things to come, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Saturday met the country's Commonwealth Games medal winners – but games organising committee (OC) chairman Suresh Kalmadi was not invited, although sports minister M S Gill was present.

A day earlier, Prime Minister Singh delivered a similar snub to Kalmadi when he met the medal winners. This is seen as an indication that Kalmadi, the tsar of Indian Olympic sports for more than a decade – and often blamed for India's poor showing in international events - may finally be on his way out.

The special panel appointed by the government will probe the financial bungling and administrative lapses. Other agencies too are investigating the alleged malpractices and general inefficiency in the lead-up to the opening ceremony.

The CAG's office is looking into financial misappropriation; and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) is probing the routing of funds, which have been traced to tax havens like Mauritius. Simultaneously, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) will be examining tenders issued for various games related projects, which are already under scrutiny after media exposes on items being bought at absurdly inflated rates.