PANJIM, JULY 2
With the Opposition Leader Manohar Parrikar charging that he has been targeted by the ruling Congress-led government through CBI which is currently investigating the alleged irregularities of IFFI 2004 related projects, the CBI claimed that Parrikar was interrogated in the capacity as chairman of the Goa State Infrastructure Development Corporation (GSIDC) in 2004.
“People believe we interrogated Parrikar because he was the Chief Minister of Goa when first IFFI happened. But we questioned him on ground that he was the chairman of GSIDC through which IFFI projects executed,” said a CBI officer who did not wished to be named.
The IFFI 2004 related projects over Rs 100 crore were approved by GSIDC while Congress MLAs had severely criticised the BJP government and Parrikar in particular for huge IFFI expenditure.
In 2006 Mauvin Godinho, deputy speaker filed a criminal complaint against Parrikar and others at town police station under various sections of the Indian Penal Code relating to forgery, fraudulent transactions, criminal conspiracy, cheating as also under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The complaint was filed based on the objections raised in the Auditor General of India (CAG) with respect to IFFI 2004 works but that there. It was handed over to CBI in 2007 whereas investigation picked up only this year and Parrikar was called for interrogation.
Since then CBI has interrogated and recorded statements of the core committee members of the IFFI 2004, Chief Minister Digambar Kamat included, said the officer.
Contractors and consultants have also been questioned and
senior officials who were with GSIDC in 2004 are also under scanner.
Recently, a high ranking official of the GSIDC who was at the helm of affairs in 2004 but currently posted outside Goa, was summoned for interrogation, said the official.
The investigation is likely to be wound-up in the next two-three months. The list of the accused is likely to be a quite lengthy, hinted the official but declined to divulge any thing more.
Even if CBI completes its probe in the next few months, it will not be free to file charge sheet immediately.
“The charge-sheet will be filed only after battery of CBI’s legal heads examine our recommendations and will decide whether to proceed with the case or not. Following which a sanction for prosecution will be obtained but it really takes a very long to get the sanction,” he said.
This means, on completion of the investigation, the local CBI office will submit its recommendations to its higher authorities. It will take decision on the basis of merits of the case.
Meanwhile, Parrikar has won a small battle against CAG. He had alleged that CAG has played into hands of the Congress-Party and had based its findings on wrong assumptions.
The CAG denied him the information which he had sought under the Right to Information Act, which he claimed, will help to prove charges CAG wrong and there was no substance in the allegations made.
He will now able to lay his hands on that information as his appeal has been granted by Central Information Commission wherein CAG authorities have been directed to disclose all information requested by him within two weeks of the receipt of the order.
