Raja''s brother, associate quizzed by CBI

New Delhi, Feb 1 (PTI) After questioning formertelecom minister A Raja, the CBI today quizzed his brotherand a close associate in connection with the Rs 22,000 crore2G spectrum scam.

Official sources said Raja''s brother - A KaliyaPerumal was questioned for over seven hours at the agency''sheadquarters here.

They said a close associate of Raja wasalso questioned.

Sources said the agency is in the process ofquestioning everyone whose premises were searched by it inconnection with its ongoing probe into the scam.

Though officials were tight-lipped about the line ofquestioning, sources said, Perumal was questioned on certainfinancial transactions and his dealings with certain firms.

Interestingly, CBI sleuths, who had yesterdayquestioned Raja for the third time, had quizzed him about therole of some of his kin in a few offshoot companies of thesetelecom firms besides the flow of funds.

Raja was forced to resign on November 14 last year inthe wake of the CAG report which held that the spectrumallocation at undervalued prices resulted in a notional lossof Rs 1.76 lakh crore to the state exchequer.

Raja got the telecom portfolio on May 18, 2007 and wasre-elected as a Member of the 15th Lok Sabha and continuedas Telecom Minister from May 31, 2009, till November 14, 2010before he tendered his resignation.

The Supreme Court has asked CBI and EnforcementDirectorate to submit status reports on their investigationsinto the 2G spectrum case to it by February 10 when the casewill come up for further hearing.

In its FIR, CBI mentioned the loss as Rs 22,000 crorebased on CVC findings which had referred the case to it. PTISAP