Parliament Committee completes hearing in cash-for-vote scam

New Delhi, Aug 18 (UNI) The seven-member Parliamentary Committee probing the cash-for-vote scam, surfaced during the July 22 trial of strength in the Lok Sabha, today completed its hearing.

Committee Chairman V Kishore Chand Deo, Congress MP, told UNI that they had completed the process of evidence collection by interrogating four people-- Mr Surendra Kulkarni, Sanjeev Saxena, Raja Suhail Hindustani and MP Reoti Raman Singh.

The interrogation lasted about one and a half hour, he said.

Mr Deo said the Committee would now hold its meeting within a week to finalise the details of the findings. The date of the meeting was yet to be finalised.

Three BJP MPs--Ashok Argal, Faggan Singh Kulaste and Mahavir Bhagora had laid bundles of currency notes amounting to Rs one crore on the table of the House, alleged thet they had been offered bribe to abstain during the trust vote.

The committee was set up after these MPs complained to the Speaker in writing alleging bribe being offered to them by Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi's political secretary Ahmed Patel.

UNI BKS/KAS GT BD2112