The CBI, probing alleged violations in spectrum allocations between 2001 and 2007, on Saturday maintained that the agency is now concentrating its probe on telecom licences awarded during former communications minister Arun Shourie’s tenure.
Sources in the agency said, “Probe by the CBI has revealed that norms related to allocation of additional spectrum were allegedly violated during NDA regime, including Shourie’s tenure. The agency may register fresh FIRs on the basis of its findings.”
“The agency on Saturday registered a case against former officials of the DoT in connection with its probe related to irregularities in the allocation of additional spectrum during the late Pramod Mahajan’s tenure. Now the licences awarded during Shourie’s tenure are under the scanner,” sources said. The BJP’s Mr Shourie and Mahajan were communication ministers between 2001 and 2003.
The agency, which has registered the “Preliminary Enquiry” (PE) to ascertain whether or not the provision of “first-come-first-serve” for granting spectrum licences was followed by the predecessors of former communications minister A. Raja, has again started recording statements of some former DoT officials.
“The CBI is recording the statements of those DoT officials, who had played key role in awarding spectrum licences during Shourie’s tenure,” sources said adding the investigations into the PE is still on.
The CBI has already recorded the statement of Vinod Vaish, who was telecom secretary during Mr Shourie’s tenure as telecom minister, sources added. Besides, the agency recently recorded the statement of senior BJP leader and former finance minister Jaswant Singh. Mr Singh was heading the Group of Ministers (GoM) on the issue of limited mobility and unified licensing during the NDA regime.