CBI questions Mayawati 'discreetly' in Lucknow

Sleuths of the agency's Anti-Corruption Unit quizzed Mayawati discreetly at her residence in Lucknow.

The CBI has questioned BSP chief Mayawati about some properties allegedly acquired by her as the agency gives the final touches to its report on a disproportionate assets case registered against the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister.

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Sleuths of the agency's Anti-Corruption Unit quizzed Mayawati discreetly at her residence in Lucknow on October five and sought clarifications about properties allegedly acquired in her name and in the name of her family members, highly placed official sources said.

The CBI questioned Mayawati despite giving an assurance to the Supreme Court that its probe into the disproportionate assets case against Mayawati had been completed.

The sources said the questioning last week was "only to tie up loose ends" before the CBI took the next step in the case, which would be either chargesheeting her or filing a closure report. Mayawati had also been questioned earlier by the agency.

The CBI, in its status report sent last year to the Supreme Court, had opined that a chargesheet could not be filed against her in the Rs 175-crore Taj Heritage Corridor case.

This gave a new twist to the scam as the investigating officer and five others were of the opinion that prosecution could be launched against Mayawati, while only the director of prosecution and the then CBI director had felt that no chargesheet could be filed on the basis of available evidence.

Mayawati was not immediately available for comments about the questioning by the CBI.