Radia tapes: CBI handed records of only 1 phone

The CBI relied upon conversations made on only one phone number of corporate lobbyist Niira Radia while filing chargesheets in the 2G scam. Rajesh Ahuja reports.

The CBI relied upon conversations made on only one phone number of corporate lobbyist Niira Radia while filing chargesheets in the 2G scam.

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The Income Tax (I-T) department had tapped more than dozen numbers of Radia and her associates during its investigations. But out of these, calls made or received on only one number were provided to the Central Bureau of Investigations.

This raises the possibility that the probe agency might not have reviewed all conversations tapped by the I-T department before filing its chargesheets in the scam.

According to sources, CBI’s then DIG Vineet Agarwal had requested the I-T department in November 2009 to provide any information or record pertaining to Radia or any other person for the purpose of investigation of the 2G case. The I-T department wrote back to the CBI that on the basis of specific information received from the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), telephone lines of Radia and some of her associates were put under observation after obtaining permission from the home secretary.

If the CBI deemed necessary it can depute one of its officer to collect the extract of calls.

Investigators say after this correspondence between Agarwal and I-T department, the CBI received around 5,800 Radia’s conversations. For months, the CBI listened to all these calls and found some of them relevant to their investigation. On the basis of these calls, the CBI recorded Radia’s statement and made her a witness.

“We have got calls of only one of Niira Radia’s number so far on the basis of correspondence that took place November 2009. It might be the case that calls made or received on only this number were relevant to CBI’s investigation and that is why investigators were given access to calls of one number only,” said a CBI source.

He didn’t deny the possibility that there might be some other calls of Radia, which are yet to be reviewed by the CBI.

An I-T officer, who dealt with the matter, said transcripts of the rest of the calls were made but he was not sure that whether these were handed over to the CBI or not.