After Jaya, BJP demands Dayanidhi Maran's resignation

The Bharatiya Janata Party today demanded that textiles minister Dayanidhi Maran quit the cabinet for alleged involvement in getting a 2G licence for private operator Aircel when he was telecom minister.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday demanded that textiles minister Dayanidhi Maran quit the cabinet for alleged involvement in getting a 2G licence for private operator Aircel when he was telecom minister.

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“He (Maran) should resign or the PM should sack him,” BJP spokesperson Jagat Prakash Nadda told reporters in New Delhi.

Nadda said the party had written to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) director asking it to clarify Maran's alleged role in a deal that Aircel struck with Malaysia's Maxis.

Maran held the telecom portfolio from May 2004 to May 2007.

According to the BJP, when he was telecom and IT minister, the foreign direct investment in the telecom sector was increased to 74 percent.

A recent report in Tehelka magazine claimed that Maran in 2006 deliberately delayed clearing the license to certain companies.

The report also said the delay pressurised Aircel to strike a deal with Maxis, which invested in the Maran family-owned Sun TV.