Enough evidence against Marans in Aircel deal: attorney-general
23 Jul 2014
Shares of Sun TV Network slumped today after it emerged that Attorney General of India Mukul Rohatgi has given a legal opinion to the Central Bureau of Investigation that there was enough evidence to prosecute former telecom minister Dayanidhi Maran and his brother Kalanidhi Maran in the Aircel-Maxis deal.
This could spell trouble for M Karunanidhi, the leader of the Tamil Nadu-based DMK party, whose family controls Sun TV.
Karunanidhi has faced further turmoil over the last few days after retired Supreme Court Judge Markandey Katju alleged that he pressurised the former UPA government to appoint a tainted and corrupt person as a judge of the Madras High Court.
Rohatgi's latest advice seems to overrule CBI director Ranjit Sinha, who felt there wasn't sufficient evidence to prosecute Maran.
The attorney general reportedly perused the record and found there was enough material to show there was culpability and conspiracy to show Maran had coerced Aircel owner Sivasankaran to sell his entire stake in the company to Malaysian businessman T Ananda Krishnan.
The CBI sought the top law officer's advice after differences arose between Sinha and the agency's director of prosecution, who believed investigators of the case had collected enough material to chargesheet the former telecom minister and his brother.
In April the Supreme Court directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to file status reports on the Aircel-Maxis deal related to the 2G scam (See: SC asks CBI, ED to file status report on Aircel-Maxis deal by 1 May).
The CBI had first asked for an opinion from former solicitor general Mohan Parasaran who wrote a letter in May this year expressing his inability to intervene in the matter. He said "it would be most appropriate that the matter is considered by the new government".
The CBI, which started preliminary inquiry into Aircel-Maxis deal on 4 January 2011, took nine months to register an FIR.
The investigating agency had told the Supreme Court in September2013 that it has completed its probe against former telecom minister Dayanidhi Maran in the case and had filed a status report in July 2011, stating that during 2004-07 when Maran was telecom minister, he had coerced Sivasankaran to sell his entire stake in Aircel to Krishnan.
In return, Maxis, the company owned by the Malaysian businessman, invested Rs650 crore in Sun TV network, run by the Marans.
