Dr Subramanian Swamy on 2G, DMK and who shared the scam money.

 

Interview of the Week `I don't want PM to resign'

From

 

http://www.dc-epaper.com/DC/DCC/2010/11/21/ArticleHtmls/21_11_2010_009_006.shtml?Mode=0

 

 

 

Janata Party president SUBRAMANIAN SWAMY says he was motivated to commence his investigation in the 2G spectrum allotment case after he heard influential people say that this might constitute the instance of the "most monumental corruption" in world history. Dr Swamy tells ANAND K. SAHAY in this interview that those who made the money will stand to gain politically if Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is forced to resign.

 

Q. Your Public Interest Litigation concerning the 2G spectrum allotment has led to the resignation of the telecommunications minister, A. Raja, and is still reverberating in the political sphere. What alerted you to the possibility that the 2G case needed investigation?

A. I went back to Harvard in 2008. I often go there in the summer to teach. In the course of a gathering of prominent people it was being said that the 2G spectrum allotment in India (2007-'08) might be the case of the most monumental corruption in world history. They were saying this might be the beginning of the end for India. The scenario was compounded on account of the earlier Satyam scam. After what I heard, I wrote a book Satyam, Spectrum, Sundaram. The "Sundaram" in the title spelt for me hope and what's good with India.

Q. Who were in the gathering?

Why did you attach so much weight to what was being said?
A. It was a sort of world economic forum, if you like. Top bankers and others. Some of them are tracking terrorist funding and hawala transactions and the like. Like the Emergency which motivated me (to fight), I felt I should put up such a fight that it should become a landmark.

Q. Someone called Niira Radia, who heads Vaishnavi Communication and represents top politicians and top business entities like the Tatas and Mukesh Ambani, is allegedly instrumental in some of the activities you were looking at. Were you in touch?

A. For three years Niira Radia was the de facto wife of an Opposition leader from south India. She is from Gujarat and there they have the system of "maitri karar" (friendship agreement). So, I knew I had to do the work myself. I have experience of taking up anti-corruption cases against (the late) Ramakr ishna Hegde and J. Jayalalithaa.
The territory was familiar.

 

I wrote to the Prime Minister. I thought here was a man I've known so well --fellow economist and he was my economic adviser when I was commerce minister. There has been no break in the relationship. I wrote in November 2008 asking for sanction to prosecute Mr Raja. There was no reply. I knew that he won't be able to rock the boat. He is decent, upright, and I have great regard for him. So, I said let me build a case as I had to go to court. Each time I got new material, I'll send a letter. In March 2010, I gave an ultimatum saying that if you don't reply by March 21, I'll go to court. This was the fourth communication.

 

 

Q. Presumably your last. What did you say in letters two and three?

A. No, it wasn't the last. He (the PM) sent me a letter on March 19 through the secretary of the department of personnel saying that it was "premature" to give permission (to prosecute the telecommunications minister).
So I filed a case in the Delhi high court on March 21.

After I went to court, they said you can give more documents.
So I sent the PM another letter on June 10, with complete documents -about 100 pages. It pre-dated the Comptroller and Auditor General material and what the media may have got.
This was the last letter.

 

When I came back in August from Harvard, my petition came up. It also asked that the 2G licences allotted be cancelled, and challenged the first-comefirst-served principle under which the spectrum was given out.

 

In another matter -in the case of a company called S Tel -the high court held that the advancing of the cut-off date from October 1 to September 25 by Mr Raja was wrong. Then I thought I am ready and went to the Supreme Court.

 

You asked about my second and third letter. In those I gave the PM more documents, including details of the company called Genex (with which the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam is allegedly associated). He knew all that already, and I was happy to note that he knew that I too knew.

 

 

Q. Why do you think the PM still didn't act against Mr Raja or any others at that stage? If he had, the issue of the PM's resignation would not be thrown up at all.

A. This (the fact that the PM did not take any action) still cannot be a case for his resignation. He didn't make any money or seek any money. He made feeble attempts to rectify matters, wrote to Mr Raja, tried to see that he didn't get the telecom portfolio again (in United Progressive Alliance 2).

 

Q. So, what was driving matters? Push from the DMK in a coalition situation?

A. Top Congress leaders. They may have got 40 per cent of the money which has been made. In the recent core group meeting of the Congress (when the storm broke), four were on one side and the PM on the other. But he got Mr Raja to resign. This is why I don't want him to resign.

Q. I heard you say on television that it was easy to crack the case. All that was needed was to go to the Americans.

A. Sure. The Americans are monitoring all financial flows in the world -bank transfers and others. Part of their own antiterrorism and money-laundering effort. There is also a UN money-laundering resolution to which we are a party. We should get in touch with the US on this.

Q. Do you believe the Congress-DMK alliance can continue if it can be publicly shown that any of the tainted money in the 2G affair has reached the top boys in the DMK? That is what the so-called Genex deal is meant to be about. After all, the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections is hardly six months away. And what happens to UPA 2 in the worst case scenario?

A. How do I care? The DMK lot may have got 30 per cent of `60,000 crore.

 

Q. But there is still a good chance that the Left and the Right Opposition can still ask for the Prime Minister to resign. This suits them politically and will precipitate a political crisis.

A. I can tell you, Bharatiya Janata Party won't ask for Dr Singh's resignation. The reason is the resignation will politically strengthen those who got the money and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Vishva Hindu Parishad understand this.

 

 

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Took up spectrum issue as it impinges on security: Swamy

 

From

 

http://www.business-standard.com/india/printpage.php?autono=415611&tp=

 

 

B Sivakumar, TNN, Nov 21, 2010, 03.16am IST

 

 

CHENNAI: Subramanian Swamy, a Harvard-educated economist, who filed a petition on the spectrum scandal before the Supreme Court, that triggered a campaign to force Union telecom minister A Raja out of office says the spectrum scandal was not only the biggest scam to have taken place in the country, it also impinged on national security. 

Replying to a range of questions on the scam and the upcoming Tamil Nadu elections, Swamy said the scandal has put PM Manmohan Singh in a bind. 

Q: When did you sense a massive scam in the 2G spectrum allocation and what prompted you to seek A Raja's prosecution? 

A: On January 11, 2008 I received an eyewitness account of what happened in the Sanchar Bhavan (which houses the telecom ministry in New Delhi). 

Q: Who brought the scam to your notice? 

A: Mostly honest civil servants. 

Q: What made you take up the 2G spectrum issue? Is it a campaign against the DMK or the Congress? 

A: It is the biggest scam which impinges on national security. 

Q: Did you expect Raja to resign when you took up the issue? 

A: I was sure that the PM was inclined and my case would help him to. 

Q: Did you expect the Supreme Court to question the Prime Minister on this issue? 

There is no explicit censure. The Prime Minister is in a difficult bind. 

When the investigating agencies were able to update the courts on the progress of the 2G case, why do you think the PMO delayed replying to your petitions? 
I think the Prime Minister was under pressure. 

Q: Union minister Kapil Sibal has said that you are taking up the 2G spectrum issue in the Supreme Court to gain political space and not for justice. 

A: It is a foolish comment. I have to intervene because the Congress is giving protection to Raja. 

Q: Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi has said he had nothing against a JPC probe. Do you think he is trying to put the onus of responsibility on Raja? 

A: That is why I insist on high-level security cover for Raja.

 

 

********

 

From

http://www.business-standard.com/india/printpage.php?autono=415611&tp=

 

Janata Party chief and former law minister Subramanian Swamy talks to Saubhadra Chatterji about life and politics

 

Q: Before coming to the current 2G issue, I want to ask you an existential question. What prompts you to knock the doors of courts as a crusader?

People love to play safe, but in my case I don't need to play safe. I am in a position where I already have what I wanted. I have been full professor at the Harvard University. I was a professor at IIT, probably the youngest there. Even today I can get a professor's job anywhere in the world. People generally avoid controversy as they are afraid that they may be denied a position. I have been brought up with the philosophy — it may sound old-fashioned — that it is your karma that gives you rewards. I have been a Member of Parliament five times. I have been elected from Mumbai, Uttar Pradesh and of course Tamil Nadu. Nobody believes how this can happen when I don't have a godfather. I don't have any shortage of money with my earnings and inheritance. So, I have elbow room for this kind of mission. Fighting injustice has always been a strong instinct in me.

 

Q: But your crusades seem to be only against the Congress party.

Well, I was not cruel when Rajiv (Gandhi) was there. The whole country was cruel to him. I was with him at that time. I was with PV Narasimha Rao who was treated very badly by Sonia Gandhi. And I am still very soft on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Even the Supreme Court noted that I have a high opinion about the prime minister. But unfortunately, the Congress today has become a crass money-grabbing entity. So, I have to take a stand. The Congress — not the prime minister but Sonia Gandhi — is trying to target the opposition. She is telling the media not to publish anything I say. I have been targeted by her. I have to fight back.

 

Q: But these efforts have yielded no political dividend for you in the past few years.

I don't care. People may seek rewards but I don't need them.

 

Q: You have not been elected to Parliament even once after 1999.

I was in Parliament for five terms. I did not contest the last time. In the previous election, it was the electronic voting machine which defeated me.

 

Q: What prompted you to fight the case against A Raja?

It was monumental corruption. Nobody else was doing it. The opposition may try to take credit now. It may have written a few letters but didn't do anything to take the matter to its logical end.

My opponents' problem is that they can't say anything against me. They can't say I am illiterate. They can't say I am corrupt and dishonest. So, they have to say nobody pays any attention to Subramanian Swamy.

But Sonia Gandhi dare not file a case against me.As far as Raja case is concerned, I don't need sanction any more. The prosecution can go ahead. The issue is why did the prime minister take such a long time? Why did he not decide immediately? My question is whether there is any mala fide intention in his delay. But I don't want him to resign because everyone knows he doesn't exercise full power. He has to take sanctions from Sonia Gandhi.

 

Q: Do you think the prime minister is a victim of coalition compulsions?

Well, I was also a minister of a coalition government which was supported by Rajiv Gandhi. But we didn't budge under pressure. My point is, coalition compulsion cannot be an excuse. Vajpayee used that as an excuse for not doing anything on Hindutva. On fundamentals, you have to take a stand or get out.

 

Q: Your state will be going for elections in a few months. Do you see the 2G scam becoming a major political issue?

I did the same thing against Jayalalithaa too. It paid rich dividend. I entered Tamil Nadu politics in the bastion of Dravidianism in Madurai. Although I am a Brahmin, I nearly defeated the DMK candidate in Madurai. Jayalalithaa's problem is that she is not credible on corruption. But if she and I join hands and she concentrates on the organisational aspects, I on the campaign against corruption and go to the public saying we will root out corruption, that will be well-received.

 

Q: But can corruption really be a determining factor in the Tamil Nadu elections?

It has been. When MGR was there, when JP was there, corruption became a political issue. But people want confidence that you are not doing it only for political purpose, that you are an honest man. People have started believing I am against corruption, I am honest, and most importantly, I can do something about corruption.

 

Q: What will be your party's strategy in the elections?

I believe if I can win two or three seats in the Assembly, it will be taken as the dawn of a new era. But if Jayalalithaa is ready for an alliance…but she can't be ready because she has got a friend called Sasikala. But if Jayalalithaa and I can join hands, we can easily get a majority.

 

Q: The Congress managers believe the Congress party is kingmaker in Tamil Nadu.

The Congress may claim anything. Let them stand alone and show they are the kingmakers. Anyway, my plan is to put up candidates on a limited number of seats, if the alliance doesn't take place. Madurai is my base and puts me in direct confrontation with M K Alagiri. But don't worry, even in the past I have defeated him. I am now looking for an entry in the Tamil Nadu Assembly. I did it once in 1996 and got one MLA. After that I went for an alliance with Jayalalithaa, but eventually we broke up. Then I got busy with academics. But now I am fully back in politics. So, my aim is to get two or three MLAs of my party elected. But if she wants an alliance, I will be ready, because despite all her minuses I like her.

 

Q: So you are confident that this 2G scam will be a blow for DMK in the next election.

Oh yes, no doubt this will be a blow for both DMK and Sonia Gandhi.

 

 

 

When Sonia and Karunanidhi join hands, can India be saved?

Following is an excellent article by Mr V. Sundaram, IAS, exposing the dereliction of duty by the 4th estate. There is nothing that Karunanidhi has not bought in Tamilnadu. He is able to come this far, because the media in Tamilnadu (with a very few exceptions) has turned a Nelson's eye to his misdemeanors. Emboldened by the confidence that he has gained in Tamilnadu, he executed his ways in New Delhi also. But the North Indian press can not be expected to come to his rescue. But then there also we are seeing signs of subdued reaction to this scam. It is obvious how and why it is so. When the looters of the South and North join hands together, can India be saved?

At the current juncture the focus on PM's 'inaction' in curbing Raja must be utilized to show why he could not make Raja heed his advice.

What made Raja go about his ways inspite of all objection from the other concerned ministries?

From whom Raja got his confidence to go about as he liked, disregarding PM's reservations?

Were the PM's hands tied in having his say with regard to Raja?

Who was responsible for this?

What is the secret behind Karunanidhi's continued assertion that the alliance with Congress is intact?

Would anyone in normal senses continue with the DMK after all that is known about this Himalayan scam by its minister?

If the alliance continues, it has only one meaning :
Together they have prospered by corruption or together they have to fall due to corruption, One can not stand tall by dumping another. So they will not pull each other down.
This scam will be dumped into drains.

Only God can save this country from these looters.

- jayasree

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From

http://ennapadampanchajanya.blogspot.com/2010/11/mafiosi-union-telecom-minister.html

2 G Spectrum fraud and the Press

18/11/2010 14:11:31
MAFIOSI UNION TELECOM MINISTER A. RAJA’S GIGANTIC 2 G SPECTRUM FRAUD AND THE PRESS

V. SUNDARAM I.A.S

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) in his Report on the 2G spectrum scam has indicted Union Telecom Minister A Raja in the scandal and said the allocation was doctored to benefit few operators. It is now a well-known and patent fact, excepting to our shameless Prime Minister, dictatorial firangi memsahib, Mu Karunanidhi of Justice Sarkaria Commission infamy and of course the petticoat washers in the Congress Mafiosi Party, that the Union Telecom Minister A Raja, through his unabashed corruption has caused a loss to the National Exchequer to the tune of Rs 1760000000000 (1.76 lakh crores). This has been graphically described by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) in his latest Report. In response to the request of some of the Opposition Parties that he should step down from his office, Union Minister Raja has the temerity to say: “I am totally innocent. I have done nothing wrong, I will not step down.” He has contempt for our invertebrate Prime Minister. He knows that he owes his office and total freedom to indulge in unfettered Himalayan corruption to the Firangi Memsahib in New Delhi and to no one else!


According to the CAG report, Raja ignored advice from everyone including the Finance Ministry and Law Ministry regarding allocations. He has treated the “advice” from the Prime Minister of India with supreme ‘Sonia-contempt’. THERE IS ENOUGH DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCE TO PROVE THIS POINT OF OFFICIAL INSUBORDINATION BY MINISTER A. RAJA. If only Mrs Indira Gandhi had been the Prime Minister, she would have immediately flung aside A Raja like a dangerously infectious rag into the Bay of Bengal. I am saying this because I am fully familiar with the manner in which she dismissed the corrupt DMK Government of the very same Mu Karunanidhi on 31st of January 1976. She appointed the Justice Sarkaria Commission to inquire into the massive corruption of the then DMK Government from 1971 to 1976. Justice Sarkaria in his final report declared the then Chief Minister Mu Karunanidhi guilty of corruption on many fronts and recommended his prosecution. The Sarkaria Commission Report was buried alive by Indira Gandhi in 1980 when she teamed up with the DMK to win the Parliamentary Elections. In the same manner, Indira Gandhi’s daughter-in-law, the firangi memsahib is using the might of her political office to bury the colossal 2G Spectrum fraud of Union Minister Raja! Political history repeats itself and Indian Politicians repeat each other with unfailing regularity and unwavering venality!


According to the CAG Report the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has been a helpless spectator in the whole sordid affair.


Excepting the NEW INDIAN EXPRESS daily in English and DINAMANI daily in Tamil (which also belongs to the New Indian Express Group), most of the other newspapers in Chennai have tried to either downplay the Himalayan corruption of Union Minister A. Raja or completely hide it from public view in one corner of the newspaper. The helpless common man in the street already hit by unprecedented inflation and beaten down and crushed by the ‘scientific corruption’ of the Italian firangi memsahib’s UPA II Government of India owes a deep debt of gratitude to these two newspapers for having reported the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth relating to the 2G Spectrum mega-Fraud as brought out by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India. These 2 newspapers are playing their legitimate role as responsible mouth pieces of the public of India. All the other newspapers have sold their journalistic souls for a mess of pottage—I mean Government patronage—by way of Government advertisements.


I am presenting below the Headlines of some of the newspapers (11-11-2010) in English and Tamil to prove my point. In this context I would like to classify the newspapers in Chennai into the following 3 categories:

1) NEWSPAPERS WHICH ARE FEARLESS FOES OF RAJA’S MEGA FRAUD AND CORRUPTION AND DEFENDERS OF THE COMMON MAN

NOTE: Shri.Ramnath Goenka was a Veer Hanuman who fought against the draconian Emergency of dictatorial Indira Gandhi and brought her down in the 1977 General Elections. Three Cheers to The New Indian Express today for maintaining this glorious tradition of fearless and nationally responsible journalism.

NOTE: All kudos to Shri. Vaidyanathan, the Chief Editor of Dinamani today for his morally responsible journalism. He is in the glorious tradition of fearless journalists like Shri.G.Subramania Iyer (the founder of the Hindu and Swadeshamitran), Mahakavi Bharathi, Shri.A.N.Shivaraman (one of the most distinguished journalists of India and former Editor of Dinamani). Shri Vaidyanathan’s motto seems to be:”Without courage there can be no truth and without truth there is no other virtue”

2) NEWSPAPERS WHICH ARE SILENT PARTNERS OF CORRUPT POLITICOS IN POWER AND SPECIALISTS IN SKEWED REPORTING OR MARGINAL REPORTING WITH COMMITMENT TO PARTIAL SUPPRESSION OR PARTIAL PRESENTATION OF FACTS JUST FOR THE SAKE OF GOVERNMENT ADVERTISEMENTS.

NOTE: According to this National Newspaper founded in 1878 (thank God not earlier!!), the public information relating to Prithvaraj Chavan, a known political light weight in the Sonia Congress Party with no grass root political connections in Maharashtra, replacing Ashok Chavan as Chief Minister of Maharashtra, is more important and vital to the nation than the colossal loss of Rs.1.76 lakh crores caused to the State exchequer by the public loot of Union Minister Raja.Long live Press Freedom to make mountains out of mole hills and mole hills out of mountains!

NOTE: Though the Times of India and The Hindu are engaged in a fratricidal commercial war to overtake one another in the market, yet both these newspapers seem to be having contempt for the larger national interest. Like The Hindu, The Times of India is also according a higher priority---nay higher status--- to the news relating to the nomination of Prithviraj Chavan as Chief Minister of Maharashtra than the loss of Rs.1.76 lakh crores caused to the national exchequer by Union Minister Raja.

NOTE: The statement given by the Deputy Chief Minister statement of Tamil Nadu will have a knock down priority in reporting. Before this statement, the damning Report given by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India against the mega corruption of Union Telecom Minister A.Raja pales into insignificance! Perhaps it is the only way of keeping the people of Tamilnadu in a state of medieval ignorance of all vital national issues.


The myriad millions of India have come to realize that they can get no justice at all from the servile, banal and irresponsible mass media --- both print and electronic. The Indian Press is steeped in its commitment to drivel, duplicity and demeaning programming. Our pressmen seem to be no longer interested in the relentless pursuit of Truth, Information and Enlightenment. Like an alcoholic drunkard chasing alcohol everyday, our men in the media seem to be in the hot pursuit of Misinformation, Disinformation, Dissimulation, Untruth and wholesale promotion of public ignorance.


Our newsmen seem to be no longer interested in proper news gathering and responsible reporting. They are only interested in propaganda which is that branch of lying which often deceives their friends without ever deceiving their enemies. All the major English newspaper owners and editors are interested in printing and publishing only PAID NEWS. The correspondents in their bonded labour are interested only in disseminating their own personal political views and prejudices, totally divorced from terrestrial reality and objective reporting, as BASIC GROUND-LEVEL NEWS. Their daily frivolous reporting is nothing but cheap propaganda which again is a monologue which seeks not any response but only an echo. What is public is only their propaganda, what is secret is their serious moral corruption.


The double charge against the Indian Press may thus be stated: “Its calculated failure to inform the public better than it does is the evasion of its responsibility. Its failure to educate and elevate the public taste rather than following that taste like a blind, wallowing dinosaur is an abuse of its freedom.”


Mark Twain once said that it is the duty of a newspaper to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. If ever there was a time when the light and comfort which newspapers can give us in India, it is TODAY. And I would like to focus on one problem which is the VIRUS destroying the vigour and energy of our nation today. I am referring to mindless DISSENT. It’s a symptom, an expression, a consequence and a cause of all others. I say Dissent and not Disagreement. Disagreement produces Debate, but Dissent produces Dissention. Dissent which comes from the Latin, means originally to feel apart from others. People who disagree have an argument, but people who dissent have a quarrel. People may disagree but may both count themselves in the majority, but a person who dissents is by definition in a minority. A liberal society thrives on disagreement but is killed by dissention. Disagreement is the life blood of democracy; dissention is its cancer. The mass media in India--both print and electronic--are interested only in deliberately fostering dissent instead of actively promoting an enlightened, responsible and civilized disagreement.

Our FOURTH ESTATE is in a state of utter moral disarray, spiritual collapse and irretrievable chaos today.

Tamils are not Dravidians.

A new blog in Tamil is started by me exclusively to counter the talks that Tamils were originally Dravidians.
The link is given in the side bar and can be accessed at http://thamizhan-thiravidana.blogspot.com

Already a similar thread is going on in this blog in English. There will be additions to it every now and then. But the new blog in Tamil is mainly addressing the Tamils to counter the propaganda that Tamils trace their ancestry to Dravidians who were supposed to have lived in the Indus valley. A multi-pronged analysis is being done to lay bare the fact that Tamils originally belonged to where they are now - in the South of India.

‘Cho’ Ramaswamy on Jayalalithaa’s offer of support to UPA

http://www.dc-epaper.com/DC/DCC/2010/11/18/ArticleHtmls/18_11_2010_011_023.shtml?Mode=0


No, It was hurly, burly but wise

by

Cho Ramaswamy 

Jayalalithaa bats like Sehwag, not like Dravid.
Her aggressive approach has now put the DMK on the defensive

ALTHOUGH J. JAYALALITHAA'S statement that she was prepared to give the support of her MPs and also get others to make up for any loss that might be caused to the Congress by splitting with the Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam (DMK) was called an offer of support by the media, I consider it more as a challenge to the Congress Party.

The All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) leader was in effect telling the Congress that it cannot hesitate to take action against former telecom minister A. Raja any longer on the ground that the DMK would withdraw support. She disarmed the DMK. Whether the Congress accepted her socalled offer or not, she stood to gain.


If the Congress decides to ditch the DMK and opt for an alliance with the AIADMK, it could together sweep the forthcoming elections in Tamil Nadu. If the Congress does not take up her offer, she still stands to gain, for she would have exposed the Congress as being handin-glove with the DMK on the issue of 2G spectrum.


Also, she gave the jitters to DMK chief M.Karunanidhi -he was already not very sure about what the Congress was going to bargain for in the Assembly elections, and now Ms Jayalalithaa had empowered the Congress to stand up against the DMK. He could no longer threaten to pull down the Central government.


With this, Ms Jayalalithaa delivered a message to the people that if the Centre did not act against Mr Raja, it could only mean that others were involved. Thus, with a single statement, she set a new political agenda. Mr Karunanidhi, who considered the telecom ministry as his family property, now had to watch silently as the ministry went to Kapil Sibal. This could happen only because Ms Jayalalithaa made her politically sagacious move of assuring the Congress.


Now it is up to the Congress and the Prime Minister to order a thorough probe into the 2G spectrum scandal and see that all those who are guilty are punished. Her so-called offer to the Congress was indeed a wise move. It surprised political watchers, but then Ms Jayalalithaa bats like Sehwag, not like Dravid. Her aggressive approach put the DMK on the defensive.

Though Gulam Nabi Azad has said the Congress would stick to the DMK in Tamil Nadu, one cannot rule out the possibility of wiser leaders deciding otherwise. If the Congress fails to take advantage of Ms Jayalalithaa's statement, they would continue to live not only with the DMK but also with the spectrum scam.

CHO RAMASWAMY is magazine editor, author and political analyst

Karunanidhi rakes up Brahmin – shudra divide and Manu dharma to attack Jayalalithaa.

 

Karunanidhi never changes his ways!

Whenever he finds himself cornered, he used to retaliate with one of the 3 words namely, sacred-thread, Aryans and dalits  and focus his attack on Jayalalithaa and Brahmins. His politics has been centered on these 5 issues only. Even if his trouble- givers happen to be someone else – such as the CAG and the whole of India at the current juncture – he can think or talk about them only with these 5 issues in mind. As such he has come up with his usual talk of Brahmin – shudra  divide and Manu dharma!!

 

But this time he forgot to talk about the sacred thread and claim that he and his men were targeted because they don't wear the sacred thread.

He also forgot to call it as an Aryan conspiracy against the Dravidians. May be he thought that it would irk Sonia Gandhi whose Italian origins qualify her as more Aryan than Jayalaithaa!

So for the present, he was satisfied with two issues – dalits and Manu dharma.

 

 

In his statement on the CAG report calling it only as 'presumptive' and not true, he asked by quoting poet Bharathi, "Is there one justice for sudras, and another one for Brahmins, who develop their belly without performing any work?" He added, "In Tamil Nadu, there is no rebirth for Manu dharma" which advocates "one justice for self and another one for sudras".

 

 

Usually he has no love lost for poet Bharathi because he was a brahmin. But that did not deter him from taking up an award in Bharathi's name and quoting selectively from Bharathiar. The same poet Bharathiyaar has spoken well about the varansharma dharma in his poem on 'atrocities in the name of castes' and has only chided forces that divide the society into upper and lower classes. He has eulogized Brahmins as straight forward people in that and other poems. 

 

 

Bharathiyar has also spoken about Manu dharma in his poems as the code to be followed. It is strange how and why Karunanidhi made a selective quote from Bharathiyaar. I tried to know the exact verse in Tamil but could not get it. It seems Deccan chronicle was the only magazine that gave this part of his statement. I did not read this in the online issues of Tamil magazines such as Dinamalar and Dinakaran or Dinathanthi. It seems they don't want the people to know this statement by him thinking that this would add to the anger that is currently mounting against Karunanidhi in Tamilnadu.

 

 

As usual Karunanidhi was wrong in interpreting Manu Dharma. Manu dharma applied harsh punishment for Brahmins and mild punishment for shudras. The differential treatment did not favor Brahmins, It favored shudras only.

If Karunanidhi does not like that Manu dharma, let him follow the Manu dharma of Tamils. The grand function in the name of Cholan king that he attended at Tanjore recently as a regional Satarap must remind him of an olden king of that dynasty who was known by the name  Manu neeti cholan. That king did not hesitate to kill his son as a punishment for having killed a calf. The justice system was very severe in those days in Tamilnadu and also throughout India, which is known from Megasthanes' writings. The king did not differentiate between the prince and an animal.

 

 

With this kind of a past history of a Tamil king by name Manu, I caution Karunanidhi to be careful in making such statements. How long it would take for Jayalaithaa to ask him to apply the same yardstick of non- differential treatment of Manu Neeti Cholan to render justice to the 3 persons killed in Dinakaran office?

 

 

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From

 

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/chennai/karuna-rakes-brahmin-dalit-distinction-attack-jaya-823

 

Karuna rakes up brahmin-dalit distinction to attack Jaya

 

November 17th, 2010

 

 

 

Chennai, Nov. 16: While asking whether it was fair to write a final judgment against former telecom minister A. Raja in the 2G spectrum controversy only on the basis of CAG's "presumptive opinion", chief minister and DMK president M. Karunanidhi launched a scathing attack on AIADMK supremo, Ms Jayalalithaa, by raking up the brahmin-dalit divide in society.

 

 

"Is there one justice for sudras, and another one for Brahmins, who develop their belly without performing any work?" he quoted poet Bharathi and concluded the seven-page statement by asserting, "In Tamil Nadu, there is no rebirth for Manu dharma" which advocates "one justice for self and another one for sudras".

 

 

Hours after the CAG report was tabled in Parliament, Mr Karunanidhi came in defence of Mr Raja and said the report had "only stated that it was a presumptive loss". In a statement, he asked whether it was fair to write a final judgment on the basis of presumption.

 

 

Mr Karunanidhi recalled past instances of how Ms Jayalalithaa had vehemently protested the CAG when the audit body found fault with her regime.

 

 

He said the Supreme Court had commented that she was making a mockery of the judicial process in a case on her alleged evasion of IT. He said CAG had pointed out mistakes on several schemes implemented by the AIADMK government. It had castigated her government for the potential loss of `1,033 crore due to short levy of taxes in 2003-04, he said. In the same year, CAG had pointed out that there was no uniform procedure in disposing of land owned by Tansi.

 

 

While Tansi sold land to Jaya Publications, of which Ms Jayalalithaa was a partner, at `1,350 per square metre, the adjacent land was sold at `2,080 per sq m, he said.

 

"Did Jayalalithaa resign then?" Mr Karunanidhi said, adding that it was unfortunate that such a dubious person is the leader of the Opposition in Tamil Nadu.

 

 

 

 

"Amma" always knows the best - Shobhaa De on Jayalalithaa.

From

 

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics/nation/Jaya-ho-Why-Amma-always-knows-best/articleshow/6923247.cms

 

Jaya ho: Why Amma always knows best

 

By

 

Shobhaa De

 

 

Let's hand it to Amma – she is nothing if not a force of nature . J Jayalalithaa , with her calm, Buddha-like expression and slow, measured speech, is a phenomenon in the murky world of desi politics. And-... trumpets! Bugles! The Caped Wonder from Tamil Nadu is back in the game once more. With her entrée , the stakes have suddenly gotten sexier.

Written off, diminished and lying low for a while, she made a dramatic reappearance in the political arena by offering an exclusive interview to Arnab Goswami on Times Now. If her calibrated quotes were designed to cause major ripples in Delhi, they scored big, with partners in the UPA's assorted breadbasket scrambling for cover. Ostensibly, Amma was after scam meister 2G Raja's head. But was that her main and only objective? Analysts think not. 

The 2G scam has been around for a while. Amma had refused to get drawn into it at that stage. Raja brazened it out and laughed all the way to various banks, even as his critics thought the nation had been diddled out of close to two lakh crore rupees.

It is a number most people would find next to impossible to fathom. How much those 122 licences issued during the auction could have fetched, or should have fetched, remains in the domain of conjecture. By demanding his sacking at this critical point (when the Congress party is sweeping its stables clean of notably corrupt netas), Amma caused a mini quake. 

Her serene and controlled demeanour as she outlined her plan to save the UPA and India from a possible mid-term poll, was perhaps this ex-actor's most convincing performance to date. Not a muscle moved on her face as she went through her game plan without emotion, listing out her reasons for going public with her outrage.

She spoke impassively while expertly crunching numbers and assuring everybody she could produce the 18 MPs needed to fill the gap if the DMK withdrew support to the UPA. She refused to reveal the identity of the 'friendly parties' on stand-by , but it was abundantly clear Amma was on a roll! And there are very few politicians left who can match Jayalalithaa in full flow. She speaks eloquently and with complete authority that does not tolerate a single interruption (for once, the garrulous Goswami was rendered speechless).

She refused to be cornered on any issue, including the prickly one involving her far from cordial relationship with Sonia Gandhi (Amma's response was mild and philosophical ). Jayalalithaa stayed resolutely focused on corruption – mega corruption --and didn't shy away from naming names (Ashok Chavan, Suresh Kalmadi). The message got through -- when Amma means business, watch out! 

What was remarkable about Jayalalithaa's scintillating interview (monologue is more like it) was the politically incorrect content she opted for. Blunt. To the point. Refreshingly outspoken, she delivered punches that were perfectly on target. Her bombshells had very little to do with Raja per se. This was Amma telling her admirers and opponents she's done with sulking in the shadows and licking her wounds. She's done with being pushed around and marginalized in her own state. And most importantly, she's done with being petulant vis a vis the Madam in Delhi.

 

 

 

 

Dr Subramanian Swamy’s interview to Jaya TV on 2G Spectrum.

On Saturday, 14^th Novermber,2010, Dr Subramanian Swamy gave an interview to Jaya TV in which he made 3 salient points on the issues around the 2G scam of A. Raja.

The significant one was that the scam is going to be Karunanidhi's nemesis. Karunanidhi's 'Saavu mani" (death bell) was the word Dr Swamy used to describe how the court proceedings would go in the case against A.Raja.  He said that with the implication of A.Raja, things would not end. One after another, every person who has had a hand in the scam or the loot would be brought to book. As such, Karunanidhi would also be brought within the gambit of law as the case progresses further.

Nothing happens without the advice of the Karunanidhi – something A.Raja himself made out in his justification for his resignation. A.Raja does suffer from Bhandhana yoga (astrological yoga for incarceration) which will be manifest in his moon dasa. He can not escape punishment. If A.Raja is brought under scrutiny, can Karunanidhi remain far away? But that depends on the how far the Congress leadership itself is part of the scam and have a share in the loot.

Let me first say what Dr Swamy told in the interview and later add my observation.

He clearly said that Karunanidhi's fall is imminent. Karunanidhi's entire life was full of instances of cheating and corruption. Dr Swamy said that Karunanidhi had the distinction of having stolen the jewels of his mother! When Raja's case is taken up, Karunanidhi's name also would be revealed in the loot.

The next important point he made was that he was not alone in the task of fixing Raja and Karunanidhi. This was in reply to the question from the interviewer who felt that as an individual (thani manithan) what he could do about this case.

In his reply, Dr Swamy recalled his association with Manmohan Singh from his (Singh's) early days in the UN and said that he has good and friendly relations with him even now. Similarly he has good relations with many politicians in Delhi. He made a rather mischievous note how could things like tabling the CAG accusing Raja of the mammoth scam happen, if the powers- that -be had not favored it? In the same vein he told that it can not be said that Dr Singh was not for Dr Swamy's current role in taking the scamsters to task. Congress' tacit support to dislodge Raja and discard Karunanidhi is implied by this.

These two points had been understood well by the DMK which reacted violently by burning the effigy of Dr Swamy the next day.

The third point by Dr Swamy was a clarification of a technical point. It has become fashionable for politicians to avoid the issue by a ready-made statement that the issue is 'sub-judice'. We heard this word told many times by A.Raja and Ms Jayanthi Natarajan in the last few days. Dr Swamy says that this word has no relevance in Indian conditions. It is relevant only in those countries such as the USA and the UK where there is a body of Jurists who also have a role in the judgment to be delivered. In those countries, airing of personal views by public officers or politicians would amount to influencing the Jurists. But in India there are no jurists. If some one says that he can not express his opinion because the issue is sub-judice, that implies that his views are likely to influence the Judges's opinion which amounts to contempt of court. Expression of views is not going to alter the opinion of opposite parties and would have in no way alter the position of the party on whose side one is. So by saying that you won't express your opinion because the matter is sub-judice, you are only tarnishing the image of the judges as they are the only ones who should not be influenced. Dr Swamy said that the media persons must retaliate with this point if they are given a reply that the matter is sub judice.

Coming to the overall message of Dr Swamy, it is clear that he is there to bring a final stop to the free reign of Karunanidhi who perhaps holds the sole distinction of a long history of corrupt practices. The most heinous crime by Karunanidhi is scuttling the democratic spirit of free and fair election in Tamilnadu by bribing the voters. The Telecom scam money was used by him in the last elections for this purpose. The Congress had been a silent spectator of that crime, or rather an abettor. That could be one reason that it is not in a position to be outwardly harsh to Karunanidhi. The Congress is also culpable of facilitating victory through such means. The EVM scam is another one which is not yet taken up. But I guess it would also come up for scrutiny some time as I find the astrological yoga for incarceration in a top politician who is known to have got elected to power through EVM scandal. Let us wait and see.

*******************

Legal trouble for Raja?

Satya Prakash, Hindustan Times

First Published: 23:50 IST(15/11/2010)

Last Updated: 23:52 IST(15/11/2010)

A Raja seems to be heading for more trouble as Janata Party leader Subramaniam Swamy on Monday vowed to file a criminal complaint to prosecute him under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

Swamy, who wanted the Supreme Court to direct the government to decide his plea for grant of sanction to prosecute the former telecom minister, told the court that after the DMK leader's resignation there was no need for the sanction.

"Now I am going to file a criminal complaint against Raja in a Delhi court to prosecute him for corruption," Swamy told a bench headed by Justice G.S. Singhvi.

He said the government was required to decide his request for sanction to prosecute Raja in three months but it simply sat over it making his plea fructuous. "I want the court should pass a formal speaking order on my petition so that it could a precedent for future such applications," he added.

The bench acceded to Swamy's request that he should be heard first on Tuesday when the hearing resumes.

Earlier, Prashant Bhushan — counsel for Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL) –  alleged that Raja sold 2G  Spectrum on 'first-come-first-served' basis against all norms as if it was cinema ticket sale.

Bhushan expressed surprise over the government affidavit justifying everything done by Raja and the telecom ministry. CPIL has filed a rejoinder affidavit, which also contained transcripts of alleged conversations between some individuals who lobbied for allocation of 2G-spectrum allocation.

He alleged that the Department of Telecom (DoT) under Raja ignored the advice of PM, ministries of law and finance and the telecom regulatory authority of India and favoured ineligible companies while allocating 2G-spectrum in 2008, causing a loss of around R1.76 lakh crore to the exchequer.

"The DoT in its affidavit has not addressed the issue of Raja's conversations with corporate lobbyists Niira Radia and the role played by Radia in the award of licences and spectrum. These conversations were given by the Directorate of Income Tax (Investigations) to the CBI more than a year back," said the rejoinder filed by the NGO.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/Print/626781.aspx

**********************

Swamy wants to file FIR

OUR LEGAL CORRESPONDENT

New Delhi, Nov. 15: The Supreme Court will tomorrow hear a plea by Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy to allow the filing of an FIR against former telecom minister A. Raja in connection with the 2G spectrum scam.

Since Raja is no longer a minister now, no sanction is required from the Prime Minister for his prosecution, Swamy told a two-judge bench today.

Swamy had earlier filed a petition seeking the Prime Minister's sanction for Raja's prosecution.

He had alleged that though the CBI had filed a case against unknown persons many months ago, no progress had been made.

With Raja resigning, Swamy now sought his prosecution.

Swamy also invoked a Supreme Court judgment, which had said that no sanction was required to prosecute those against whom there were corruption charges.

The sanction clause could be invoked only to protect people who exercise bona fide powers and not those who indulge in corruption, which doesn't fall under official duty, the court had said in an earlier judgment.

The top court said it would hear Swamy's plea tomorrow when it resumes hearing.

It was a low-key hearing today compared with the previous hearing when the court had pulled up the government for making slow progress in the probe and continuing with Raja despite the allegations against him.

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1101116/jsp/business/story_13182136.jsp#

********************

Press Trust Of India

Udhagamandalam , November 15, 2010

First Published: 16:46 IST(15/11/2010)

Last Updated: 16:50 IST(15/11/2010)

DMK workers burn effigy of Subramanian Swamy

DMK workers on Monday burnt an effigy of Janata Party president Dr Subramanian Swamy in Udhagamandalam for raking up the 2G spectrum issue, leading to resignation of Union Telecom Minister A Raja, who represents Nilgiris parliamentary constituency.

Raising slogans against Swamy, they doused the effigy with petrol and set it ablaze, police said, adding that no arrests were made.

Swamy had filed a Special Leave Petition in the Supreme Court for a direction to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to decide on his application, seeking prosecution of Raja.

Raja resigned last night.

DMK activists also staged demonstrations at Gudalur, Pandalur and Kothagiri against Swamy for allegedly making derogatory remarks against party president and chief minister M Karunanidhi, in an interview to a TV channel, police said.

Meanwhile, AIADMK workers burst crackers and distributed sweets to the public and partymen in Coimbatore, rejoicing over Raja's resignation.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/Print/626597.aspx

J. Gopikrishnan, the man who exposed A.Raja.

 

Credit must go to Mr J. Gopikrishnan of The Pioneer for exposing the Spectrum scam. An interview with him published in The Pioneer reveals the kinds of pulls and pressures he faced and the way Raja and others tried to cover up the scam.

 

Excerpted from the article

 "The man who felled a king" by Chandan Mitra.

The complete article can be read at

http://www.dailypioneer.com/296854/The-man-who-felled-a-king.html

 

 

 

The Pioneer Investigative Team asked Gopi to unravel his journey from a fledgling political reporter to giant killer. Excerpts from a chat:

Q: How did you come across the 2G scam story?

A: We sensed a scam when Swan and Unitech started offloading shares at whopping prices of `4,500 crore and `6,200 crore in September 2008. Bureau chief Navin Upadhyay asked me to dig for information and luckily we got a great whistleblower, who knew the ins and outs of the Telecom Ministry. He once told me the PM was totally unhappy with Raja and had summoned him to ask what was going on.

Slowly, the whistleblower narrated the entire range of corruption in the Ministry. Those days, Minister Raja was making false claims that he had followed his predecessors. This young Government officer told me about the parking of funds in front companies by the Minister and his associates in the name of relatives. He told me who the actual beneficiaries of the scam were, including corporates, politicians and lobbyists.

This officer asked me to talk to my Editor and get his consent and only then would he reveal further. The Editor told me to go ahead and the whistleblower became a goldmine of hidden information for The Pioneer. Days and nights of discussion and checking the authenticity of facts happened in his office and at many crowded places in the city, once it became important to avoid detection.

Q: Which was the first story you did and what was the reaction?

A: After finding out the gamut of front companies dealing in real estate, we decided to expose Raja's ill-gotten wealth. Chandan Mitra and Navin Upadhyay saw all documents and decided to go ahead with the series. The first story appeared on December 11, 2008, on Raja's main real estate front company, Green House Promoters. The details of other companies and hidden irregularities in the spectrum scam were published over the following days.

Q: Did you come under pressure to stop the campaign? How did you ward them off?

A: I met Raja after the first report, as directed by the Editor. He alleged that I was being funded by his rivals in the party and even told me some names. He was visibly shaken asking me how I got the details of his personal assets. He requested me to avoid writing. My reply was that I had been deputed by the Editor only to take his version, nothing else. Raja agreed to speak, but repeatedly requested me to stop writing further on this. Similarly, many corporate groups were after me with the same plea. I must say none threatened or behaved badly.

Those days, Raja was planning to conduct the 3G auction at cheap base rates without Cabinet's approval. Many agents from the corporate sector requested us to stop our series of exposes, saying our reports would force the Government to refer the 3G auction to an EGoM. We told them that was exactly what we wanted. But I must say some friends with contacts in high places warned me I may be targeted. It was a hidden warning, which I ridiculed. It would not be fair to reveal what kind of offers were made by different entities to avoid the 3G issue going to an EGoM. But finally, the Cabinet referred it to an EGoM, which put Raja out of the picture and the nation netted `1.06 lakh crore.

Q: Did any political or corporate entity offer you financial inducements to stop writing on this?

A: Yes, they did. The figures were mind-boggling. Corporate lobbyists and Raja's people even asked me to stop informing the Editor and end the series abruptly. I told them even the meeting with them was in the knowledge of the Editor and the Bureau chief. Some shameless fellows tried to access Raja, claiming friendship with me. Some were acting as double agents. One top lobbyist was actually a double agent. That person was leaking information against Raja while providing information to him too. Pressure on the whistleblower was enormous by now, but he stood by us fearlessly. There were several politicians who enlightened and encouraged me. Some bureaucrats and police officials also guided our investigations.

Q: Do you think the matter will end with Raja's resignation or will more heads roll?

A: I personally feel the court cases filed by Subramanian Swamy and Prashant Bhushan would come to logical conclusions, leading to the cancellation of all licences which were found illegal by CAG. The court may direct auctions to be held like the old petrol pump scam of Satish Sharma. I don't expect anything from the Government in this matter. Some persons, including Raja, may face the wrath of the law. I don't think anything harsh will happen to corporates from the Government's side. After the CAG report and PAC findings, if the Government has the willpower, it can -- by executive order -- cancel all licences and order auction, which will definitely fetch around `2-3 lakh crore.

Q: How do you think the Government can make the spectrum policy transparent and above board?

A: Spectrum management should be handed over to ISRO, but no politician would like that for obvious reasons. In India, spectrum is not yet audited. No one knows how much spectrum is available. This was purposefully done for making easy money. First the Government should ask an organisation like ISRO to audit spectrum availability in all departments. Only then will transparency come.

Q: After Telecom what? Do you have more targets in mind?

A: No idea. I felt totally exhausted upon learning of Raja's resignation. I was expecting good news on Sunday, when sources told me Pranab Mukherjee had firmly asked Karunanidhi at 11.30 am to remove Raja. This was doubly confirmed when they later said Raja was forced to sign the papers around 5.30 pm. Anyway, no idea what's for me next…life will go on. I was covering Health and Left (parties) those days. By a stroke of luck, Raja came on our radar…

Virtual pat on back

Within minutes of A Raja submitting his letter of resignation to the Prime Minister late Sunday night, India's twitterati erupted into joyous celebrations. Pouring ridicule and vitriol on the scam-tainted Minister, twitterers across India heaped praise on The Pioneer and tweeted congratulatory messages to J Gopikrishnan by the hundreds. Several of the tweets were RT'ed, or re-tweeted, amplifying the overwhelming outpouring of goodwill for the paper. Had the news not broken on a Sunday, that too late in the night, when people are usually offline, both The Pioneer and Gopi would have trended globally, which they almost did, such was the enthusiastic response. The congratulatory tweets continued to pour in through Sunday night and Monday from Indians around the world. Tellingly, many of the tweets pointed out that The Pioneer persisted with a story that no 'big' paper would touch or 24x7 news channels would report. Along with Raja, Delhi's self-appointed 'MSM', or mainstream media, was the clear loser!

 

 

 

 

Karunanidhi's confession of collective involvement in 2G scam. (Pearls of wisdom)

Long ago I started compiling 'pearls of wisdom' by our 'Great' people. That column was not filled up for long. But with telecom scam blowing its heat on Karunanidhi & Co, we start getting some fantastic words from them.

The most visible face of scientific scams is Karunanidhi.

He has no equals in this world in this regard.

He has withered the tsunami of the past in the name of Sarkaria Commission and is still continuing with no holds barred. 

But this time he seems to be a little rattled thanks to the Jayalalithaa bomb-shell.

But in wishing to phoo-phoo it, he has indeed spilled the golden word - not just pearly words - of his culpability in the scam. 

When the issue was raised in the Assembly on 12^th November by O. Panneerselvam of AIADMK who said that the Congress doors will open for the AIADMK,  the Chief Minister Karunanidhi popped up to say

"Only we know if the doors will open or not".

This single liner by Karunanidhi is loaded with lot of meanings.

This conveys that the Congress would not open the doors at all to AIADMK,

because if it opens, there will be skeletons to see, meaning thereby that the Congress also has a share in the loot.

This liner also smacks of a kind of talk that a blackmailer would make to caution his buddy if he seems to part ways with him. 

'Hi, if you harm me, I would also harm you - but more terribly."

That is why Karunanidhi is pretty sure that the Congress would not touch Raja. 

What a confession of his own and Congress' complicity in the Mother of Scams!

A.Raja's confession on 2G. (Pearls of wisdom)

A.Raja does not agree with the CAG figure of 1-77 lakh crore as the money lost in the 2G spectrum auction.

The wise words narrated  by him is that it was

"technically, logically and fatally wrong" to compare 3G with 2G and

assess the value of 2G at the 3G rates.

This is really a same side goal because when he said this,

he hardly seemed to realize that this is what he is being accused of. 

How could he sell 2G in 2007 at 2001 rate which is not applicable in 2007? 

By saying that 2G value should not be assessed on the basis of 3G,

he implies that his 2G rates should not have been fixed on the basis of 2001 rates. 

What a self confession!! 

Related posts:-

 

http://jayasreesaranathan.blogspot.com/2010/11/sack-raja-and-cut-off-dmk-from.html
http://jayasreesaranathan.blogspot.com/2010/11/2g-raja-spectrum-scam-who-are.html
http://jayasreesaranathan.blogspot.com/2010/11/raja-scam-unlawful-meeting-of-counsels.html

Raja - scam - Unlawful Meeting of counsels

Unlawful Meeting of counsels: Gross violation of ethics, tampering of evidence, rigging advocacy in SC --

PM inquiry demanded by Dr. Swamy

Press Release Nov. 13, 2010

 

                             The media news that a meeting of counsels, representing the Union Government, the CBI which agency is investigating the 2G Telecom scam, and of Minister A. Raja who is the prime beneficiary of the scam, is a gross violation of ethics, and represents a tampering of evidence and to rig advocacy in the Supreme Court which hearing my Petition  on granting of sanction to prosecute Raja. I demand the PM order an inquiry, and determine which political authority directed that such a meeting take place. Obviously the Union Law Minister Mr. Moily must have ordered it  at the behest of Ms. Sonia Gandhi. Ms. Gandhi is concerned  in the case to save A. Raja, because she has received part of the huge scam illegal payments.  

Subramanian Swamy

*************

Press statement issued by BJP National Spokesperson and MP,

Shri Prakash Javadekar

Saturday, 13 November 2010

 

http://www.bjp.org/content/view/3683/394/

 

Three damning revelations, which have come in public domain today, have completely exposed the UPA dispensation of its complicity in 2G Spectrum scam and its design to cover it up.

 

 

Law officer calling meeting of the investigating CBI officers and Raja's counsel in presence of Solicitor General of India Shri Gopal Subramaniam is the clear proof of the cover up of the scam and tantamount to the contempt of the Hon. Supreme Court. When the Supreme Court bench is scheduled to hear the matter on Monday, the law officer cannot organize such a high profile meeting without the directive from higher up. As per our information, Solicitor General, Raja's counsel, Anita Shenoy, DIG (ACB) Shri Palsania and the concerned investigating CBI official Sh. Vivek Priyadarshi were also invited for the meeting besides other officers. This meeting was to decide the unified strategy to be adopted before the Supreme Court. Such a meeting and an effort is unheard of and totally unethical and is a clear proof of Govt's cover up plan, notwithstanding shifting of the convenor officer in face of leakage about the meeting.

 

 

Interview of the ex DoT secretary Mr. D. S. Mathur is a clinching evidence of how the2G Spectrum was allotted without following any principal of natural justice or equitable and transparent policy. Agenda of Mr. Raja was very clear from day one. He wanted to distribute 500 new licenses without bothering either for the availability of the spectrum or the required procedure. Though, he resisted all along the public auction of the spectrum, It is clear now that it was in a way a "Private Auction". The damning details of how Raja advanced the cut-off date for processing the application for licenses and how some of the upright officers one after another sought to distance from the decision and even retire prematurely is an eye opener. Even his disregard to formulate a policy to determine competent applicants also proves that the allotment was a premeditated conspiracy.

 

 

Even the licenses, which should have been cancelled by now for not starting operations in stipulated time frame explains the Govt's patronage to Sh. Raja's efforts. Now TRAI will have to take a call.

 

 

The Prime Minister cannot remain mute spectator and see the other way as he is doing for so long.

 

BJP also ask Congress president Mrs. Sonia Gandhi and General Secretary Mr. Rahul Gandhi to explain their stand. They can choose not to speak on inconvenient issues but they should not forget that nobody can fool the people for all the time.

 

 

******

Published: November 13, 2010 15:15 IST | Updated: November 13, 2010 15:34 IST

 

 

Proposal on 2G auction ignored by Raja, says ex-Telecom Secretary

PTI

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article883966.ece?homepage=true&css=print

 

 

Amid demand for ouster of Telecom Minister A Raja on account of 2G spectrum allocation, former Telecom Secretary D S Mathur today said that his proposal for auctioning the radiowaves was ignored.

 

 

"I had also said that the spectrum was limited and therefore only limited number of licences can be given," Mr. Mathur told PTI over phone from Bhopal.

 

 

He, however, refused to comment on how all the new players or 121 licencees were given start-up spectrum of 4.4 Mhz within a few weeks of being allocated licences.

 

 

"How did he (Raja) do it, I have no idea, So I cannot comment on it," Mr. Mathur said, adding that there was not enough spectrum to accommodate over 500 applicants.

 

 

Mr. Raja has been claiming that he managed to break the cartel of telecom players and managed to give 2G spectrum to new players to bring in competition that resulted in massive growth in the sector, besides lowering of tariffs.

 

 

Mr. Raja has been in the eye of a storm over allocation of 2G spectrum in 2008 at prices fixed in 2001, which has allegedly caused the exchequer a loss of a whopping Rs 1.40 lakh crore, besides Rs 36,000 crore loss due to giving additional spectrum to existing operators beyond the contracted 6.2 Mhz.

 

 

The telecom minister has said that the policy of 1999, which was followed by his predecessors, had been followed while distributing licences in 2008.

 

 

Mr. Mathur, on the other hand, also said that he along with the then Member (Finance), Telecom Commission, discussed the matter and proposed to the minister that "we should go for an auction route for distributing spectrum" but the same was ignored.

 

 

Mr. Mathur, who retired as Telecom Secretary on December 31, 2007, had reportedly refused to sign the file for issuance of Letters of Intent to new operators.

 

 

*********

 

2G scam: Former telecom secretary blows whistle on Raja

AGENCIES, Nov 13, 2010, 11.49am IST

 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/6918857.cms?prtpage=1

 

 

NEW DELHI: One of the top officers of the department of telecommunications (DoT) has blown the whistle on the telecom minister A Raja's attempts to grant the controversial licences to nine operators. Speaking exclusively to TIMES NOW, former DoT secretary D S Mathur said that he resisted Raja's attempts to grant the licences without first coming out with an "equitable and transparent policy".

 

 

DS Mathur, who retired from his office on December 31, 2007 said, "When the minister (Raja) did not listen to my counsel, I told the joint secretary concerned that I would not sign any files on licensing matters, therefore no files should be put up before me."

 

 

He added that the applications were ready for scrutiny in the first week of November 2007 and had he agreed to toe Raja's line, these licences would have been granted later that month.

 

 

"When he became the minister in May 2007, he called me and expressed his desire to award around 500 new licences. My response was that the same was not possible as there was not much of spectrum and if such large number of licences were given, it would raise a big question mark whether spectrum needs of the existing operators could be met or not and whether new licensees could be given spectrum? I even told him that in the event licences are given and government fails to give spectrum, companies could move to court," added Mathur.

 

 

However, A Raja continues to remain in denial and said that all the decision he took was under the observation and consent by the Prime Minister.

 

 

The controversial decision of Raja to advance the cut-off date for processing the applications for licences, from October 1, 2007 to September 25 was also not okayed by Mathur.

 

Sonia - Mania - a colonial hang-over!

From

 

http://expressbuzz.com/edition/print.aspx?artid=222331

 

An empress of India in new clothes

By

 

John MacLithon

e-mail: john.maclithon@gmail.com

12 Nov 2010

Like Sonia Gandhi, I am a Westerner and a brought-up Christian. Like Sonia Gandhi, I have lived in India many years and I have adopted this country as my own.


But the comparison ends there. I did land in India with a certain amount of prejudices, clichés and false ideas, and I did think in the enthusiasm of my youth to become a missionary to bring back Indian 'pagans' to the 'true god'. But the moment I stepped in India I felt that there was nothing much that I could give to India, rather it was India which was bestowing me. In fact in all my years here India has given me so much — professionally, spiritually, sentimentally. Most Westerners, who come here, still think they are here to 'give' something to a country, which, unconsciously of course, they think is lesser than theirs. It was true of the British, it was true of Mother Teresa, it is true of Sonia Gandhi.


It is a fact that Sonia brought discipline, order and cohesion into the Indian National Congress. But the amount of power that she, a person of foreign origin, an elected MP like hundreds of others, possesses should frighten her. All the television channels report without a blink that Maharashtra CM rushes to Delhi to meet Sonia Gandhi to plead for his life. But should not Chavan have gone to the prime minister first?


The CBI blatantly and shamelessly quashed all injunctions against Ottavio Quattrocchi and even allowed him to get away with billions of rupees which he had stolen from India. Yet, without batting an eyelid, and with the Indian media turning a blind eye, it goes ruthlessly after the chief minister of the most efficiently run state, the most corruption free. Today the Congress, with Sonia's overt or silent consent, pays crores of rupees to buy MPs to topple non-Congress governments. Her governors shamelessly hijack democracy by twisting the law.


Are Indians aware that their country has entered a state of semi-autocracy where every important decision comes from a single individual residing in her fortress of 10 Janpath surrounded by dozens of security men, an empress of India? Do they know that the huge amounts of the scams, whether the 2G, the CWG, or the Adarsh housing society scam, do not go into politicians' pockets (only a fraction), but to the coffers of the Congress for the next general elections, and more than anything to please Sonia Gandhi? Nobody seems to notice what is happening under the reign of Sonia Gandhi.


That an Arundhati Roy is allowed to preach secession in India, whereas on the other hand the Congress government has been going after the army, the last body in India to uphold the time-honoured values of the Kshatriyas — courage, honour, devotion to the Motherland. They  alone today practise true secularism, never differentiating between a Muslim or Hindu soldier and  who for a pittance daily give their lives to their country. First it was the attempt of a caste census, a divide-and-rule ploy if there is one; then there are the first signs that the government is thinking about thinning down the presence of the Indian army in the Kashmir valley, which will suit Pakistan perfectly. And now there is the Adarsh housing society scam in which the army officers, at the worst, were innocently dragged into it. We know now that it was the politicians of the Congress who benefited the most out of it.


It would be impossible in France, for example, to have a non-Christian tell a Hindu (who is a non-elected president or PM) to be the absolute ruler of the country behind the scenes, superseding even the PM. There are many capable people in the Congress. Why Can't a billion Indians find one of their own, who will understand the complexity and subtlety of India, to govern themselves?  Not only that, but her very presence at the top has unleashed forces, visible and invisible that are detrimental to the country. There is nothing wrong in espousing the best of the values of the West — democracy, technological perfection, higher standards of living — but many of the institutions are crumbling in the West: two out of three marriages end in divorce, kids shoot each other, parents are not cared for in their old age, depression is rampant and Westerners are actually looking for answers elsewhere, in India notably.


One does not understand this craze to Westernise India at all costs, while discarding its ancient values. Sonia Gandhi should do well to remember that there still are 850 million Hindus in India, a billion worldwide and that whatever good inputs were brought by different invasions, it is the ancient values of spirituality behind Hinduism which have made India so special and which gives it today unique qualities making an Indian Christian different from an American Christian, or an Indian Muslim different from a Saudi Muslim. It is an insult to these tolerant Hindus to show United States President Barack Obama as his first input of the Indian capital the tomb of Humayun, a man who slaughtered Hindus in thousands, taking Hindu women and children as captives. He even subjected his elder brother Kamran to brutal torture, gauging his eyes out and pouring lemon into them.


The tragedy of India is that it was colonised for too long. And unlike China, it always looks to the West for a solution to its problems. Sonia Gandhi, whatever her qualities, is just an incarnation of that hangover, an empress of India in new clothes.

2G Raja spectrum scam: Who are corruption partners? -- BJP

Press statement issued by BJP National Spokesperson and MP, Shri Prakash Javadekar 12 Nov. 2010 The affidavit of the Govt. in the Supreme Court on the 2G Spectrum allotment is testimony of the abject and complete surrender of the Congress before its partner DMK for mere survival in the office. The shameful justification of corruption in 2G Spectrum allotment is the proof of a complete paralysis that has set in the Govt.   The Govt is defending the indefensible. NDA Govt. in 2003 decided in the cabinet that the spectrum in future will be allotted by auction only. Mr. Balu and other DMK ministers were part of the decision. Thus, the Govt. is fooling that they are pursuing the NDA policies. It is absurd that the resources like spectrum, which has become scarce, could be sold in 2008 at the price of 2001. The teledensity, which was merely 7% in 2001 is now more than 60%. So the argument of teledensity is also not valid.   BJP seeks answers from the Prime Minister on following questions;   Has PMO given its assent to 2G Spectrum allotment without auction, as is being suggested by DoT or Mr. A. Raja ?  Was the decision to allot 2G Spectrum without auction taken by DoT or by the Cabinet ?   Is it not a fact that the PM was fully informed about the TRAI position on the issue and the fact that TRAI has never recommended 2G Spectrum allotment without auction ?  If 2G allotment without auction was right mode of allotment, then why 3G Spectrum was allotted through auction ?   Every time when confronted, Mr. A. Raja stressed that he has sought guidance and permission from the Prime Minister at every stage. This casts heavy responsibility on the PM to clarify whether he has personally approved the procedure, which Mr. A. Raja was adopting. PM's silence on this is therefore more eloquent. The paralysis on the part of the Prime Minister to take action against Mr A. Raja on the worst scam India has ever witnessed proves that he was also partner in the decision.   BJP demands immediate sacking of Mr. A. Raja and an explanation from the Prime Minister.       (Shyam Jaju)     Headquarter Incharge

 http://www.bjp.org/content/view/3680/394/