Not enough evidence to nail Maran in 2G scam: report

Union textiles minister Dayanidhi Maran may yet escape the 2G spectrum scam dragnet, as according to a report, the government agencies have been unable to find evidence that Maran arm-twisted the promoter of cellular service provider Aircel to sell out to Malayasia's Maxis when he was telecom minister, as is alleged.

According to The Times of India, sources familiar with the relevant documents said there was nothing to suggest that Maran used his position as telecom minister to intimidate C Sivasankaran, the promoter of Aircel, to sell his stake to the promoter of Maxis, who later invested Rs600 crore in Sun Direct – a TV company run by the Maran family.

A public interest litigation filed in Supreme Court alleged that Maran sat over the applications of the original promoter of Aircel for licence and spectrum till Sivasankaran took the hint and sold the company to Maxis. The telecom department under Maran granted Aircel the licences it had been seeking soon after the change of guard.

Government sources, however, claimed that the serious charge of misuse of official position was not borne out by the evidence on record, according to the report.

Both the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate are probing the role of Maran in the Aircel-Maxis-Sun Direct transaction. Both the BJP at the centre and Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa are asking for his resignation.

Sivasankaran is to appear before the CBI next week. The CBI has told the Supreme Court that it will probe the Aircel-Maxis deal when the investigation into the 2G scam moves beyond its current focus.