Incriminating diaries found in raids on Raja

Cynics may scoff that the Central Bureau of Investigation raids on former telecom minister A Raja are too little, too late – they should have been conducted soon after a first information report (FIR) was filed against him a year ago. But nonetheless, the CBI seems to have found diaries that point to an illicit money trail.

The diaries reportedly contain details of payoffs to politicians of the ruling combine and journalists. It could expose a nexus between politicians, bureaucrats, journalists and the corporate world.

Several teams of the CBI had simultaneously conducted 14 raids in Delhi and Chennai, besides Raja's Perambalur house in central Tamil Nadu, on Wednesday in connection with 2G spectrum allocation case. At least three diaries crammed in Tamil and English containing a large number of business details along with the names of involved people from 2003 to 2010 were found.

''Erasing all the financial trails from banks, companies and personal records is an impossible task. The diaries can give us many leads and later serve as evidence,'' a CBI official reportedly said. The jottings have made the case stronger for the CBI to interrogate Raja, whose fresh questioning is now more than likely.

The interrogation of Raja's close aides, whose premises too were raided on Wednesday, is in progress.

Apparently a high-level committee headed by home secretary G K Pillai gave the green signal to raid Raja's premises, including his official residence at Motilal Nehru Marg in central Delhi.

The Enforcement Directorate has already traced money trail of telecom companies that benefited from spectrum distribution by Raja, and their links with a slew of Chennai-based companies having ties with Raja's family-members and business associates.

CBI had earlier this year subjected former Telecom Regulatory Authority of India chairman Pradip Baijal to a gruelling interrogation on decisions taken during his stint. He is said to have offered vital clues to the investigative agency.