2G case: 'We knew there was internal sabotage'

Janata Party chief Subramanian Swamy on Tuesday welcomed the latest disclosure in the 2G spectrum case that reveals that the Central Bureau of Investigation suspects its own prosecutor of aiding the accused, and said that it has given a huge boost to the prosecution case itself instead of the opposite.

"I think what has happened is that it has given a huge boost to the prosecution case itself instead of the opposite because this was happening, there was internal sabotage, we knew that. And in Chidambaram case, I could see it blatantly that there was sabotage from the CBI," said Swamy.

"And now, we have information that it is the CBI, which conducted the sting operation. So, there is hope that the honest elements in the CBI will now dominate and we will proceed and get to the root of the matter. And I think this corruption case goes all the way to the top and one by one we will now proceed further," he added.

A Parliament panel will today examine the CBI's allegation that its lawyer in the 2G case was colluding with a representative of one of the companies accused of criminal conspiracy and cheating to land an out-of-turn mobile network license in 2008 from then Telecom Minister A. Raja.

The CBI has confirmed that it has removed its prosecutor, AK Singh, based on audiotapes that purportedly reveal him advising Unitech Managing Director Sanjay Chandra on his legal strategy.

Chandra along with Raja and 12 others have been charged with conspiracy, forgery and cheating in the 2G case.

Raja is accused of tinkering with procedure and policy to help Unitech and other companies to get the 2G licences. They are also charged with benefiting Unitech to make windfall gains by selling stakes at a premium to Telenor.

The trial is currently in the court of O.P. Saini in Delhi's Patiala House. The case is being tried by a special CBI court in Delhi and the Supreme Court is monitoring the CBI's investigations.

Former Telecom Minister Raja was forced to resign from the Union Cabinet after a report of the Comptroller and Auditor General faulted him for undervaluing spectrum to favour companies who were largely ineligible for 2G spectrum, and added that the government had probably lost Rs.1.76 lakh crore in estimated revenue.