CBI all set to take fresh aim at TMC, BSP leaders

New Delhi: The CBI is all set to tighten its noose around leaders of both the Trinamul Congress (TMC) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), signalling fresh trouble in Modi 2.0 for parties and leader who are bitter critics of the NDA government.

While the role of several TMC leaders is under the scanner of Central probe agencies in the Saradha chit fund scam of 2013 and Narada scam revolving around alleged cash bribes taken by Bengal politicians and top cops in 2014, the CBI has begun looking into the alleged role of the then chief minister Mayawati and other BSP leaders in the sale of 21 sugar mills in Uttar Pradesh during 2011-12, sources said.

Former chief minister and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav may also face CBI heat as the agency has started probing 13 mining projects in Uttar Pradesh.

While the CBI has got hold of what it claims to be “clinching” electronic as well as material evidence to nail Narada and Saradha scam accused, the agency may soon call senior leaders of the BSP for questioning in connection with another recruitment scam which allegedly took place during Mayawati’s tenure in the state, according to sources.

After examining Indian Police Service officer S.M.H. Mirza and others in connection with Narada scam, the CBI is planning to re-examine some TMC leaders allegedly seen accepting money in the sting.

The CBI had lodged an FIR on April 17, 2017, against 13 people, including several ministers, TMC MPs and Mr Mirza, a month after the Calcutta high court asked it to conduct a preliminary enquiry into the Narada sting footage case.

As far as the CBI’s probe into the alleged irregularities in the sale of 21 sugar mills in Uttar Pradesh is concerned, sources said the agency has decided to examine at least six former senior bureaucrats.

The sale of sugar mills during Mayawati’s tenure in 2011-12 had allegedly led to a loss of `1,179 crore to the state exchequer, they added. The agency registered an FIR and six preliminary enquiries (PEs) to probe the alleged irregularities, they added.

In another case, the CBI is set to issue summons to more than 10 selected candidates as part of its investigation into the preliminary enquiry (PE) registered against unidentified officials of the state government to probe allegations of nepotism and other irregularities in selections by the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC) when Mayawati was chief minister in 2010.

Akhilesh Yadav is under the CBI scanner for allegedly clearing 13 mining projects on a single day. Sources said office of the former chief minister had allegedly cleared 14 leases, of which 13 were cleared on February 17, 2013, in violation of the e-tendering process, sources said.