Did not favour any firm,says Maran; BJP wants him to quit

He said as telecom minister,he was totally impartial in taking decisions.

Union Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran today refuted allegations that his decisions as telecom minister in UPA-I had indirectly benefitted his family-owned Sun TV Network,even as the BJP demanded his resignation and asked the CBI to investigate his role in the 2G spectrum allocation scam.

Breaking his silence on allegations that Sun TV was a beneficiary of pay-offs by Malaysian company Maxis Communications which benefitted from equity sold by mobile service provider Aircel,Maran said reports that he was “partial” to a particular company in granting of UASL (Unified Access Services Licensing) licence was “totally untrue and malicious”.

He said as telecom minister,he was totally impartial in taking decisions.

Story continues below this ad

He said he neither favoured any company,nor did he allow any applicant to jump the queue in grant of licences.

But Maran admitted that the Department of Telecom had raised “serious queries regarding the funding potential” of Aircel,its “net-worth and debt-equity ratio” before he had become a minister,and the application for UASL license was “under examination”.

Licences were granted later “when the file was submitted by the department after thorough examination of all issues including legal aspects,and the company became fully eligible for allotment,” he said.

The BJP had asked whether Aircel was given licences for 14 new circles after Maxis acquired 74 per cent stake in that company.

Story continues below this ad

In his statement,Maran said that “no telecom company directly or indirectly had ever invested in any of the companies owned by my brother during my tenure as telecom minister.”

He,however,admitted that Astro — said to be a subsidiary of Maxis — invested in Sun Direct in 2007,but said the investment was made after he quit office.

“I was not even a minister when M/S Astro invested in Sun Direct in December 2007 as I had resigned on May 13,2007. Needless to say,I own no shares or any fiduciary interests in any of these companies,” he said. The BJP had asked whether any group companies of Maxis had invested in Sun Direct when he was the telecom minister.

Meanwhile,the BJP today sought Maran’s resignation and wrote to CBI Director A P Singh demanding that his role should also be investigated. “If he does not quit,the PM should sack him,” said BJP spokesperson J P Nadda.

Story continues below this ad

CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat also demanded a serious investigation into the allegations.

Reacting to the developments,a CBI spokesperson said the agency is already probing allocations of UAS licenses between 2001 and 2007. “We are looking into the matter actively. An FIR can be registered once the preliminary enquiry is completed. Those found to be involved during the probe will be summoned once a case has been registered,” he said.