CBI likely to drop charges against ex-telecom minister Maran

In a new development in the probe against former telecom minister Dayanidhi Maran over the the Aircel-Maxis deal, the Central Bureau of Investigation's top officials are reportedly not in favour of filing a charge-sheet in the case on the basis of the available evidence and the absence of a reply from Malaysia.

The Economic Times cited highly placed sources as saying that while the agency's investigation team was in favour of filing a charge-sheet against the accused persons, CBI director Ranjit Sinha feels the evidence may not stand scrutiny in court.

Attorney General Goolam E Vahanvati had in February refused to give his opinion on the Aircel-Maxis file as there was no conflict of opinion between director of prosecution (DoP) and the CBI director.

Till last year, CBI was confident it had enough evidence against Maran and others and it had even informed the Supreme Court that it would file a charge-sheet in the case.

This changed after Maxis Communications and Astro All Asia Networks recently wrote to CBI contesting the agency's probe against the companies and their executives. Malaysia's attorney general Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail had met Sinha and cited legal restraints in not providing details to CBI in the case.

A CBI source said, "Our forensic audit, legal examination of documents recovered from India clearly proves the offences. However, in the absence of reply from Malaysia, the evidence is not fool-proof and CBI director has raised this issue. The reply to the evidence is being presently examined in law ministry. Let's see what their opinion is."

While approaching Vahanvati earlier this year, CBI had said that alleged quid pro quo between Maran and Malaysian business tycoon T Ananda Krishnan was 'too complicated'.

Earlier, CBI had told the apex court that it had found substantial evidence against Maran, and that it would go ahead with filing of charge-sheet in the case in the event of certified documents not being provided by Malaysian authorities.

Centre for Public Interest Litigation had filed documents in Supreme Court alleging that Maran had thwarted the C Sivasankaran-owned Aircel's repeated pleas for grant of mobile services licences from 2004 to 2006, forcing the owner to sell his stake at discounted prices to Maxis Group owned by T Ananda Krishnan.

It alleged that Aircel was shown favours shortly after change in ownership.