Radia tapes: Fresh preliminary enquiry registered by CBI

New Delhi:CBI today registered a freshPreliminary Enquiry (PE) related to Radia tapes against asenior Income Tax officer who was trying to get a transfer byallegedly offering bribes to CBDT officers.The sources said a senior IT officer and an allegedmiddlemen having links with the officer and others have beennamed in the PE as accused.

"This is to verify the allegations that the said officerwhile posted in Income Tax Appellate Tribunal was trying toget transferred to Delhi by allegedly paying illegalgratification in CBDT," CBI sources said.CBI has so far registered 13 PEs on the direction of theSupreme Court which had asked on October seven to probe intothe issues related to intercepted phone calls of corporatelobbyist Niira Radia with politicians, corporate top shots,bureaucrats and businessmen.

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[caption id="attachment_1200497" align="alignleft" width="380"] Niira Radia. PTI.[/caption]

The CBI has been asked to file a status report to theSupreme Court within two months.The CBI is looking into alleged irregularities in the allotment of iron ore mines at Ankua, Singhbhum district ofJharkhand to Tata steel. Former Jharkhand Chief Minister MadhuKoda and unknown officials of Jharkhand government have beennamed as accused.

Besides this, a PE has been registered against the then Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) V K Sibal, RIL andother unknown persons in connection with alleged favours shownby the DGH to RIL and the quid-pro-quo.While an enquiry is also being conducted against working of touts and middlemen and kickbacks in the aviation sector,another PE was registered against Unitech for alleged marketmanipulation and hammering of stocks.

A PE into Radia's conversations pertaining to allegeddiscrepancy in subscriber data base declared by RelianceCommunications to BSE and TRAI has also been registered.Many Corporate Houses had welcomed the CBI probe into thecase and hoped that all controversies would be put to rest after the agency's time-bound probe was completed.

PTI