CBI to summon Dalmiya

Onkar Singh

The Central Bureau of Investigation's special unit investigating the television rights scam will soon summon former International Cricket Council president Jagmohan Dalmiya for questioning.

This was disclosed by a top official of the agency in an informal chat with rediff.com.

"We interrogated WorldTel chief executive Mark Mascarenhas on May 15, after which it was decided to summon Dalmiya sometime next week. His interrogation is crucial as he was involved in the entire process of awarding the contract for television rights," said the official, who did not wish to be named.

The CBI had registered five different cases against top officials of Doordarshan under the Prevention of Corruption Act last year. Sources in the investigating agency said that during their investigations it came to light that the top brass of Doordarshan had close links with Mascarenhas.

The CBI, it is learnt, will also send a two-member team to London to carry out investigations at that end as some important documents pertaining to television rights are at the ICC headquarters.

"We have not yet decided who will go. In all probability the team will be headed by a DIG rank official. But in case we cannot spare the DIG, the team will be headed by an officer not below the rank of Superintendent of Police. They would get in touch with Scotland Yard, Interpol and Sir Paul Condon, chief of the Anti-Corruption Unit of the ICC," said a CBI official.

The CBI is working on the basis of a report submitted by former Prasar Bharti financial adviser Arun Aggarwal, who alleged that Doordarshan lost $4 million in the telecast of the 1999 cricket World Cup matches.

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