New Delhi, July 21:‘ Mr Fix- it’ runs out of friends as RS aves way for his questioning.THE ARREST and questioning of Sanjeev Saxena and Suhail Hindustani in the cash- for- votes scam has put the spotlight on former Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh and paved the way for his questioning in the case.
Government sources confirmed the Delhi Police had been given the green light to question Singh, a Rajya Sabha member. It is learnt that Rajya Sabha chairman Hamid Ansari has given the police the permission to question Singh. Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar has also been informed of the steps being taken by the police.
However, sources clarified that no permission was needed from the Rajya Sabha chairman to question Singh in the cash- forvotes scam as the money had allegedly changed hands outside Parliament.
If the heat is on the former Samajwadi Party leader, it is because of the statements made by Hindustani and Saxena. Hindustani, who had claimed to be a former member of the Bharatiya Janata Party ( BJP) Yuva Morcha, was arrested by the crime branch of the Delhi Police on Wednesday, becoming the second person to be arrested in the case after Saxena. He was held after several hours of grilling by the crime branch sleuths under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Hindustani is believed to have acted as a liaison person between Amar Singh and the BJP MPs who were allegedly bribed ahead of the July 22, 2008, trust vote after the Left parties withdrew support to UPA- I. On Wednesday, just before he was questioned by the police, he told media persons, “ The police should examine my call details between July 9 and July 22 of 2008.
Amar Singh and some other Congress leaders were in constant touch with me.
They had approached me to get MPs from the BJP to save the government.
They offered me posts like chairmanship ( in some corporations).” He claimed that he had received calls from Amar Singh and Sonia Gandhi’s political secretary Ahmed Patel. “ People close to the Prime Minister called me and even from 10 Janpath ( Sonia Gandhi’s residence).” Hindustani did not name the people he spoke to. He also claimed that he was asked to approach around “ 15- 16 MPs” who were not financially sound or who were going through a crisis and offer them between ` 5 crore and ` 10 crore each.
During the interrogation, sources said, Hindustani appeared to be confident and named Amar Singh as the main source of the money. “ Suhail had named Amar Singh and the other MPs. He has also asked us to check his call details of that time in 2008 to verify his allegations.Suhail has been charged under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Amar Singh will also be interrogated in a week’s time,” a senior police official said.
Deputy commissioner of police ( Crime) Ashok Chand refused to comment on the ongoing investigations.
The Congress dismissed the allegations levelled by Hindustani. “ Which Suhail Hindustani? The one that belongs to the BJP,” snapped Congress spokesperson Shakeel Ahmed when asked to comment on Hindustani’s allegations, adding: “ The court will take suitable action on the basis of whatever facts will be produced before it.” Amar Singh, who had earlier said that Sanjeev Saxena was removed as his personal assistant and was working for Shahid Siddiqui — who had resigned from the Samajwadi Party following differences with Singh — was not available for his comments on the latest developments in the case. His office said that Amar would not be available for the media. One of his aides said the MP was out of Delhi on work related to his business and would be back on Friday.
Meanwhile, a Supreme Court lawyer has filed a complaint with the police commissioner, alleging that Amar’s hefty donation to a charity run by former US President Bill Clinton was linked to the Indo- US nuclear deal. Santosh Kumar Tripathi has asked the police chief to look into this aspect of the scam as it continues with its probe after receiving flak from the Supreme Court, which is hearing the matter, for its glacial pace of investigation.
Tripathi alleged that Singh did not disclose the donation to the Clinton Foundation, which is between $ 1 million to $ 5 million ( ` 7 crore- ` 36 crore) to the RBI in violation of the law of the land, including Section 3 of the Foreign Exchange Management Act ( FEMA). It clearly shows that it was “ not a donation for the noble cause” but some kind of gratification offered to the Clinton family by Singh.
During the debate on the trust vote on July 22, 2008, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had asked the Opposition members to provide proof to prove their allegations that the government had indulged in horse trading to save itself.
The Samajwadi Party, which had 39 MPs in the previous Lok Sabha, had provided crucial support for the government.
Apart from that, several BJP and NDA MPs also helped the government either by voting in favour of the trust motion or abstaining from voting. Amar Singh had actively campaigned to ensure the passage of the trust motion.
The Kishore Chandra Deo committee, which probed the issue, had said in its report, “ The reason being that even if the averments were to be true, going by the cannons of general evidentiary norms, the same cannot be said to lead to any conclusion that Shri Sanjeev Saxena delivered the money to the said three members as an emissary of or at the instance of Shri Amar Singh.”
Man for all seasons & reasons
Helped Amitabh Bachchan when the superstar was facing financial difficulties
Fell out with Mulayam as Jaya Prada started targeting Azam Khan, now SP’s Muslim face
For long, Amar Singh was Mulayam Singh Yadav’s bulwark against Mayawati, BJP and Congress
He has great access to the film industry.
He is friends with Sanjay Dutt, Jaya Prada and others
He latched on to then CPM boss H. S. Surjeet to mend ways with Congress by barging into Sonia Gandhi’s dinner
Friendly with business tycoon Anil Ambani & Sahara chief Subrata Roy
Mulayam’s agent to save UPA- I as SP backed the govt on Indo- US nuclear deal
Congress needed him to save the govt; cash- for- votes scam was the result
Road to a scam
JULY 9, 2008:
Left submits letter to President, withdrawing support on Indo- US Nuclear deal
JULY 22:
BJP members carry bags filled with cash, approximately of ` 30 million in value, inside House and allege it was meant to buy votes. The House takes up the vote of confidence which is won by the UPA with 275 in favour and 256 against. A TV channel also conducts a controversial sting at the residence of one of the MPs
JULY 30, 2008:
A committee formed by then Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee and headed by V. Kishore Chandra Deo ( Congress) starts probe into the scandal
DEC 15, 2008:
The committee submits its report, suggesting the money trail be probed by an investigating agency such as the CBI or the income tax department
JANUARY 29, 2009:
The Delhi Police registers a case in the scam on the direction of then Speaker Chatterjee.
CFSL authenticates sting CD
MARCH 17, 2011:
US diplomatic cables leaked on WikiLeaks purportedly say payoffs had been made to MPs to ensure a majority for the UPA govt in the confidence vote. Nachiketa Kapur, a political aide of Congress leader Satish Sharma, is quoted as saying that a fund of ` 50 crore had been formed to pay MPs
JULY 17:
Home minister allows the Delhi Police to grill MPs named as accused in the case. Later, Suhail Hindustani is arrested
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