New Delhi: DMK MP Kanimozhi, facing trial in a 2G scam related money laundering case along with 18 others, was the "active brain" behind the formation of accused firm Kalaignar TV Pvt Ltd (KTV), a prosecution witness Friday told a special court.
Aseervatham Achary, a former additional private secretary to ex-Telecom Minister A Raja, deposed before the court that Kanimozhi used to visit Raja's residential office here and she used to be widely covered in news bulletins of KTV.
"I used to see Kanimozhi Karunanithi, a member of Parliament belonging to DMK party, visiting A Raja at his residential office at Motilal Nehru Marg, New Delhi frequently and also she visited his office at Electronics Niketan once.
"Both of them used to talk to each other regularly. She is present in court today. Kanimozhi Karunanithi is the active brain behind the formation of Kalaignar TV. She used to be widely covered in news bulletins of Kalaignar TV," Achary told Special CBI Judge O P Saini.
During his cross-examination by senior advocate Rebecca John, who appeared for Kanimozhi, Achary denied that he was deposing falsely in the court on this issue.
"I have not examined any record of KTV. However, I know that she (Kanimozhi) is an active brain behind KTV because during that period of formation of KTV, I was working with A Raja and I have personally seen that she was taking active interest in the formation of KTV," he said.
"It is wrong to suggest that I am speaking lies on this point. It is further wrong to suggest that I have made this statement for political reasons," he said.
As Achary deposed in the court that he has been a member of BJP since April this yearafter taking voluntary retirement from government service in February, Kanimozhi's counsel asked him, "I put it to you that in the light of the fact that Subramanian Swamy and BJP had made this case a political issue, you gave evidence in the case to suit their political game?"
"I agree to the first part of the suggestion but deny the latter. It is wrong to suggest that I have been manipulated by Subramanian Swamy and the BJP to give false evidence before the court. It is wrong to suggest that my evidence today qua Kanimozhi Karunanithi is false and devoid of any legal merit or foundation," he replied.
During the hearing, Kanimozhi's counsel contended that Achary in his earlier statements recorded before a magistrate and the special court during the trial of 2G spectrum allocation case probed by the CBI, had not referred to Kanimozhi as the active brain behind KTV.
"I forgot to say so," Achary, whose recording of statement concluded today, replied.
On being asked by the court as to what was the meaning of the term active brain, Achary said, "By the term I mean that she used her mind to create something new to suit a person's requirements."
During the recording of his statement, Achary said that he had seen Swan Telecom promoters Shahid Balwa and Vinod Goenka, who are also co-accused in the case, visiting and meeting Raja at his office and his residence here when he was Minister of Environment and Forests as well as Minister of Communications and Information Technology.
He deposed that MD of KTV, Sharad Kumar, also an accused in the case, used to meet Raja at his office and residence in connection with follow up work of formation of KTV.
"A Raja used to ask me to connect Priyaranjan Das Munshi, the then Minister of Information and Broadcasting, and his private secretary Manoj Kumar Aggarwal over phone and I used to connect them to A Raja. A Raja used to talk to them in connection with early grant of licence to Kalaignar TV," he said.
On being cross-examined by advocate Vijay Aggarwal, who appeared for Shahid Balwa and various other accused, Achary denied that he had deposed falsely before the ED and the court "being inimical to A Raja".
Raja, Kanimozhi, DMK leader M Karunanidhi's wife Dayalu Ammal, Shahid Balwa and Vinod Goenka and 14 others, including nine firms, are facing trial in the case in which the ED had on April 25 filed a charge sheet against them for alleged offences under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The court had on October 31 framed charges against the 19 accused, 10 individuals and nine companies, saying that Raja, allegedly in connivance with Kanimozhi, Dayalu Ammal and other co-accused, was involved in "parking" of illegal gratification of Rs 200 crore in Kalaignar TV.
This is the second case in the 2G scam in which Raja, Kanimozhi and others, including Shahid Balwa and Vinod Goenka, are facing trial for their alleged roles.
The other individual accused in the money laundering case are Directors of Kusegaon Fruits and Vegetables Pvt Ltd Asif Balwa and Rajiv Agarwal, Kalaignar TV MD Sharad Kumar, Bollywood producer Karim Morani and P Amirtham. All of them are out on bail.
The court had also framed charges against accused firms --STPL, Kusegaon Realty Pvt Ltd (formerly Kusegaon Fruits and Vegetables Pvt Ltd), Cineyug Media and Entertainment Pvt Ltd (formerly known as Cineyug Films Pvt Ltd), Kalaignar TV Pvt Ltd, Dynamix Realty, DB Realty Ltd, Eversmile Construction Company Pvt Ltd, Conwood Constructions and Developers (P) Ltd and Nihar Constructions Pvt Ltd.
In the first case probed by CBI, Raja, Kanimozhi, Shahid Balwa, Goenka, Asif Balwa, Rajiv Agarwal, Morani and Sharad Kumar, along with nine others, are facing trial for alleged criminal breach of trust, conspiracy, forgery, cheating and other offences punishable under IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act.
