2G scam: CBI yet to fix Raja’s links with Green House Exports

NEW DELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation is yet to establish links of former telecom minister A Raja with Green House Exports, a firm owned by Sadique Batcha, who, CBI believes, is his business partner.

CBI on December 8 had searched residences of Raja and his associates in the telecom ministry. They included his personal secretary RK Chandolia, former secretary Siddhartha Behura, former technical member of the Telecom Commission K Sridhara and Deputy Director-General of the Department of Telecom AK Srivastava. It also searched the Chennai and Delhi residences of Batcha.

CBI is culling crucial information from documents found in a search at the telecom department headquarters on October 22, 2009, and the December 8 searches.

A CBI official said that several incriminating documents and diaries were found at Raja’s official residence at 2A Motilal Nehru Marg. “Officials are studying the documents. We will decide on serving notice to Raja for questioning only after we build a full-proof case against him,’’ the source told ET.

CBI questioned Sadique Batcha about his association with Raja, after search on his residences. “There may be other companies too which have links to Raja indirectly but we are yet to trace them,’’ the CBI source said. A real estate firm’s office in Tamil Nadu was among the 14 premises CBI searched recently.

Prior to last week’s searches, CBI had examined former chairman of the telecom regulator, Pradip Baijal, about his role in formulating and vetting the policies. After the searches, the sleuths intrinsically questioned Chandolia and Behura, known for their proximity to Raja.

According to the CBI source, the agency has lots of work left before a firm case is built. It has to also contend with a February deadline set by the Supreme Court, which is monitoring the investigation.