Amit Shah took bribe from scamster Ketan Parekh?

Gujarat Congress leader Arjun Modhvadia has alleged that former minister of state for home Amit Shah had allegedly received a bribe of Rs 2.5 crore from stock market scamster Ketan Parekh to help him in a bank fraud case.

He released a letter of the then additional DG (CID crime) Kuldeep Sharma written to the then Chief Secretary of Gujarat Sudhir Mankad in August 2005 regarding Ketan Parekh, the main accused in the Rs 1600 crore fraud in Madhavpura Mercantile Cooperative Bank (MMCB) which had gone bust in 2001.

BJP was not immediately available for comments.

Sharma, in his letter, had referred to an application of one Hasmukh Shah who had allegedly given details of how a broker Girish Dani had organised a meeting between the main accused Parekh and Shah, who was also a director in the MMCB, Modhvadia alleged.

Parekh was arrested for diverting money to play in stock markets, leading many small investors to bankruptcy.

"Dani met Ketan Parekh and he organised a meeting at his house in the first week of October 2004 between Shah and Parekh. It was decided in this meeting that Shah would organise withdrawal of SLP filed in the Supreme Court because he has influence as director of the bank," Sharma stated

in his letter to the then chief secretary.

"In return, Parekh paid, during this meeting, to Shah Rs 2.5 crore. After that, Shah had prematurely got withdrawn the SLP in the Supreme Court," alleged Sharma in the letter.

The CBI arrested shah on Sunday in connection with the Sohrabuddin fake encounter case.

Sharma in the letter said, if the allegations are true, then the alleged bribe taking public servant (Shah) has to be proceeded against under sections 13(1)(d), 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

Sharma said subsequently, Shah had held a meeting on August 31, 2008 with state DGP and other police officials and director and CEO of the bank.

Sharma also provided details of calls made by Dani, Parekh and Shah to each other during that time. Parekh was arrested by CBI, which investigated the MMCB fraud case, but subsequently he was granted bail by Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Ahmedabad on condition of his depositing Rs 380 crore in the bank in three years, he said.

Subsequently, Gujarat High Court also confirmed Parekh's bail when the MMCB approached the court, he added.

Thereafter, MMCB had filed a special leave petition (SLP) in the Apex Court seeking cancellation of bail granted to the main accused.