Pawar and family may control DB Realty: Radia

Corporate lobbyist Niira Radia, in the thick of the 2G scam investigation ever since her tapped phone conversations with politicians and business leaders was leaked to the press, has reportedly told the Central Bureau of Investigation during her interrogation that union agriculture minister Sharad Pawar and his family may be controlling the controversial DB Realty, one of the alleged beneficiaries of out-of-turn spectrum allocation.

According to the reports – clearly the result of a leak by CBI officials, since they have been splashed across the media without attribution to any particular source – Radia also said Pawar may have pursued the issue of spectrum and licence for Swan Telecom with former telecom minister A Raja, who is now in custody. Swan is the telecom entity floated by DB Realty, now Etisalat DB.

Radia also said that she had no documentary proof to back up her allegation.

"As per the general perception in Mumbai as well as outside, DB Realty is directly or indirectly controlled by Pawar and his family members. Shahid Balwa and Vinod Goenka are key persons in DB Realty. In that background, I had quoted the name of Sharad Pawar who might have pursued the matter with Raja, then telecom minister, for showing favour to Swan as well as to Anil Ambani's Reliance Communications in issuing of unified access service (UAS) licence for use of dual technology," Radia said when asked how she knew about Pawar's lobbying for Swan.

Pawar today rubbished Niira Radia's claims. "This is absolutely a lie and a foolish statement … I have no financial or any interest in this company (DB Realty). The person Vinod Goenka ... his father knows me from many years. He has set up a milk processing unit in my hometown 20 years back and that unit is going well," he told a TV channel.

He also denied any link with former DB managing director Shahid Balwa, who is now in CBI custody with Raja and a couple of former department of telecommunications officials.