CWG scam: CBI raids Suresh Kalmadi's house, office
NEW DELHI: The CBI on Friday finally raided the residence and office of Suresh Kalmadi in connection with the probe into corruption in hosting of the Commonwealth Games 2010, leading the Pune MP to scatter around the blame for the mess and argue, once again, that the sports ministry and government officials were party to all the decisions under scrutiny.
In Delhi and Pune, CBI teams raided residences, farmhouses and a petrol pump owned by Kalmadi, chairman of the Games Organizing Committee, specifically from the point of view of corruption in hosting the Queen's Baton Relay in London in 2009. Headquarters of the Kalmadi-controlled OC in Delhi was also raided. As was the Mumbai residence of Kalmadi's brother Mukesh who runs Sai Service Agency, an authorized car dealership.
Residences of his two personal secretaries -- Shekhar Srivastava and Manoj Bhore in Delhi and Pune -- were also raided. Documents were seized from Bhore's residence.
Kalmadi was interrogated for six hours and could be summoned again.
Coming months after corruption in the Games was established, the raids appeared to be largely a symbolic exercise and could have hardly caught Kalmadi and his associates unawares. However, even as the surprise element was missing, with this widely seen as tailored to help UPA government's effort to counter the perception that it was soft on CWG graft, CBI's belated interest in Kalmadi could still spell trouble for him.
The agency, according to sources, has got evidence to support the allegations of graft in individual deals like the hosting of Queen's Baton Relay and expenses incurred by the OC on hiring of equipment and other purposes.
Queen's Baton Relay, held in 2009, involved an expenditure of Rs 33 crore, a minuscule component of the Games budget running into thousands of crores. Yet, the case seems to be emerging as a chink in the OC's armour.
CBI confirmed that the focus of the probe was on QBR. Agency spokeswoman and DIG Binita Thakur told TOI, "The raids were carried out at seven places in connection with QBR. The case was registered on November 15 and subsequent investigations have revealed that there were misappropriation in awarding the contract to London-based A M Films regarding video installations."
Sources in the agency told TOI that the seized files contain important information on tendering, budgetary allocation and contract details, which had gone missing from the OC office.
After a day-long operation, CBI teams confiscated documents, six hard drives and two laptops. A dozen files were seized and the agency was still interrogating Kalmadi's two personal secretaries till last reports came in.
Kalmadi blamed the doctoring of documents and fudging of accounts on his close associates T S Darbari and Sanjay Mohindroo who are already in jail along with former OC treasurer M Jeychandren.
He also tried to deflect blame by saying that many others were involved in the decisions taken by the OC. "I am innocent till proven guilty. I have not taken any decisions alone. All decisions have been taken by the Executive Board and there were senior officials of CWG, ministry of sports and others involved in it."
Rejecting charges that he had tried to destroy evidence, Kalmadi said he had nothing to hide and had written to the CBI director pointing out that he had handed over all relevant files to the agency. "I can give them whatever else they may need," he added.
The nonchalance did not appear convincing because of the evidence of irregularities in hosting QBR. Mohindroo and Darbari were allegedly brazen in helping AM Films bag the contract. Importantly, Kalmadi had strongly defended his colleagues till the expose of forged emails forced him to sheepishly announce an inquiry.
The matter is now with CBI whose probe will be greatly helped by the fact that the Indian High Commission in London has already established as fake the email that was brandished by Kalmadi to defend the controversial deal.
Expressing willingness to cooperate, Kalmadi said, "They handed me a list and I do not know what all they have taken. I offered them full cooperation. After delivering a successful Games, we are ready for any investigation."
He said some of the files said to be missing could be with the Enforcment Directorate and Comptroller and Auditor General ( CAG).
Earlier this month, CBI director A P Singh had written to the cabinet secretary, apprising him of the need to remove Kalmadi and his deputy Lalit Bhanot from their OC posts as they were proving to be a roadblock in the investigations.
Kalmadi denied the charge. "I have written to the CBI chief and informed that the OC has handed over all documents. In case there were some more left, the same would be provided." The Pune MP further said the OC was given a budget of Rs 1,500 crore which was "four to five per cent of the total budget" for the Games. He said the Games had made Rs 700 crore by way of revenue.
A team of four officials searched Kalmadi's residence in Bheema building in Worli and his office in Lower Parel in central Mumbai. The raids began simultaneously in New Delhi, Mumbai and Pune around 7am where a team of more than 50 CBI officials carried out the searches.
The agency said they had found sufficient evidence of criminal conspiracy by OC officials in tampering with some documents and manipulating information in them. CBI officials have made a list of documents which are untraceable. Officials said that they plan to summon Kalmadi for questioning again once these documents have been analysed.
The CBI has so far filed three FIRs in connection with the alleged irregularities in CWG and searched the residences of OC director general V K Verma and Bhanot on November 30. While one case is related to a Rs 107 crore deal struck with a Swiss score-keeping firm, the agency had registered two other FIRs in connection with the contract given to AM Films for the QBR ceremonies by the OC in London.
The CBI had arrested Darbari, Mohindroo and Jeychandren for their alleged complicity in these deals. All three are presently in judicial custody.
(With inputs from Vijay V Singh in Mumbai & Asseem Shaikh/Mihir Tanksale in Pune)
In Delhi and Pune, CBI teams raided residences, farmhouses and a petrol pump owned by Kalmadi, chairman of the Games Organizing Committee, specifically from the point of view of corruption in hosting the Queen's Baton Relay in London in 2009. Headquarters of the Kalmadi-controlled OC in Delhi was also raided. As was the Mumbai residence of Kalmadi's brother Mukesh who runs Sai Service Agency, an authorized car dealership.
Residences of his two personal secretaries -- Shekhar Srivastava and Manoj Bhore in Delhi and Pune -- were also raided. Documents were seized from Bhore's residence.
Kalmadi was interrogated for six hours and could be summoned again.
Coming months after corruption in the Games was established, the raids appeared to be largely a symbolic exercise and could have hardly caught Kalmadi and his associates unawares. However, even as the surprise element was missing, with this widely seen as tailored to help UPA government's effort to counter the perception that it was soft on CWG graft, CBI's belated interest in Kalmadi could still spell trouble for him.
The agency, according to sources, has got evidence to support the allegations of graft in individual deals like the hosting of Queen's Baton Relay and expenses incurred by the OC on hiring of equipment and other purposes.
Queen's Baton Relay, held in 2009, involved an expenditure of Rs 33 crore, a minuscule component of the Games budget running into thousands of crores. Yet, the case seems to be emerging as a chink in the OC's armour.
CBI confirmed that the focus of the probe was on QBR. Agency spokeswoman and DIG Binita Thakur told TOI, "The raids were carried out at seven places in connection with QBR. The case was registered on November 15 and subsequent investigations have revealed that there were misappropriation in awarding the contract to London-based A M Films regarding video installations."
Sources in the agency told TOI that the seized files contain important information on tendering, budgetary allocation and contract details, which had gone missing from the OC office.
After a day-long operation, CBI teams confiscated documents, six hard drives and two laptops. A dozen files were seized and the agency was still interrogating Kalmadi's two personal secretaries till last reports came in.
Kalmadi blamed the doctoring of documents and fudging of accounts on his close associates T S Darbari and Sanjay Mohindroo who are already in jail along with former OC treasurer M Jeychandren.
He also tried to deflect blame by saying that many others were involved in the decisions taken by the OC. "I am innocent till proven guilty. I have not taken any decisions alone. All decisions have been taken by the Executive Board and there were senior officials of CWG, ministry of sports and others involved in it."
Rejecting charges that he had tried to destroy evidence, Kalmadi said he had nothing to hide and had written to the CBI director pointing out that he had handed over all relevant files to the agency. "I can give them whatever else they may need," he added.
The nonchalance did not appear convincing because of the evidence of irregularities in hosting QBR. Mohindroo and Darbari were allegedly brazen in helping AM Films bag the contract. Importantly, Kalmadi had strongly defended his colleagues till the expose of forged emails forced him to sheepishly announce an inquiry.
The matter is now with CBI whose probe will be greatly helped by the fact that the Indian High Commission in London has already established as fake the email that was brandished by Kalmadi to defend the controversial deal.
Expressing willingness to cooperate, Kalmadi said, "They handed me a list and I do not know what all they have taken. I offered them full cooperation. After delivering a successful Games, we are ready for any investigation."
He said some of the files said to be missing could be with the Enforcment Directorate and Comptroller and Auditor General ( CAG).
Earlier this month, CBI director A P Singh had written to the cabinet secretary, apprising him of the need to remove Kalmadi and his deputy Lalit Bhanot from their OC posts as they were proving to be a roadblock in the investigations.
Kalmadi denied the charge. "I have written to the CBI chief and informed that the OC has handed over all documents. In case there were some more left, the same would be provided." The Pune MP further said the OC was given a budget of Rs 1,500 crore which was "four to five per cent of the total budget" for the Games. He said the Games had made Rs 700 crore by way of revenue.
A team of four officials searched Kalmadi's residence in Bheema building in Worli and his office in Lower Parel in central Mumbai. The raids began simultaneously in New Delhi, Mumbai and Pune around 7am where a team of more than 50 CBI officials carried out the searches.
The agency said they had found sufficient evidence of criminal conspiracy by OC officials in tampering with some documents and manipulating information in them. CBI officials have made a list of documents which are untraceable. Officials said that they plan to summon Kalmadi for questioning again once these documents have been analysed.
The CBI has so far filed three FIRs in connection with the alleged irregularities in CWG and searched the residences of OC director general V K Verma and Bhanot on November 30. While one case is related to a Rs 107 crore deal struck with a Swiss score-keeping firm, the agency had registered two other FIRs in connection with the contract given to AM Films for the QBR ceremonies by the OC in London.
The CBI had arrested Darbari, Mohindroo and Jeychandren for their alleged complicity in these deals. All three are presently in judicial custody.
(With inputs from Vijay V Singh in Mumbai & Asseem Shaikh/Mihir Tanksale in Pune)
Read more: CWG scam: CBI raids Suresh Kalmadi's house, office - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/CWG-scam-CBI-raids-Suresh-Kalmadis-house-office/articleshow/7159551.cms#ixzz1Dkgto879
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