Snoop 'suspect' tag on RIL official

New Delhi, March 19: The CBI today told a Delhi court that Reliance Industries vice-president (finance) K.V. Mohanan and the managing partner of Mumbai-based law firm Chitale and Associates, Rajendra Chitale, were "suspects" in the corporate espionage case the agency is probing.

Agency officials began questioning Mohanan and Chitale at the CBI headquarters this afternoon. Mohanan had been questioned for nine hours yesterday too.

A senior CBI officer said that Mohanan had today been confronted with Mumbai-based chartered accountant Khemchand Gandhi, an accused in the case, "to ascertain the nature of their relations".

The case relates to alleged leak or sale of confidential ministry documents, largely relating to foreign investment policies, to private consultancy firms.

Last week, the CBI had arrested Chitale's partner Paresh Chimanlal Buddhadev along with Gandhi. The duo are said to have been the middlemen between government employees who leaked the documents and corporate clients.

Among the arrested government employees are Ashok Kumar Singh, undersecretary in the department of disinvestment and grievances; Lala Ram Sharma, section officer in the department of economic affairs; Ram Niwas, an assistant in the department of economic affairs; and Daljeet Singh; an upper division clerk in the commerce ministry.

The agency today sought an extension of the police remand for Gandhi and Buddhadev, saying Mohanan and Chitale needed to be confronted with the duo to unearth the larger conspiracy and the others involved in the scandal.

Special CBI judge S.C. Rajan extended the CBI custody of Gandhi and Buddhadev by two days and sent the other accused to judicial custody till April.

A CBI officer claimed that Gandhi had revealed his links with Mohanan.

"A preliminary probe has revealed that some private companies paid huge money to various people to provide them with policy papers of both the (finance and commerce) ministries," the officer said.

"Investigations are under way to identify the other middlemen through whom private companies procured confidential documents."

Agency officials suspect the racket has been active for the past two years and may have compromised government policymaking relating to foreign investments in the country.

Reliance Industries Limited (RIL)