NEW DELHI: CBI sleuths have found 6-kg gold worth Rs 1.60 crore during searches at 24 locations in connection with the case of alleged disproportionate assets registered against former Telecom Minister A Raja.
CBI sources said that in addition to the 6-kg gold, which includes jewellery set with precious stones, 20-kg silver and 200 documents pertaining to various properties were also found during the searches yesterday.
They said that a major chunk of the gold was recovered from the lockers and residence of Raja in the national capital. The sources added that the details of fixed deposit receipts recovered during the searches is being scrutinised by teams of CBI.
The agency, they said, also recovered Income Tax returns, share transaction documents and other such related material which may help it in establishing the allegations of amassing of wealth disproportionate to the known sources of income by Raja, who is an accused in the 2G spectrum allocation scam.
Attempts to contact Raja for his reaction to the development failed as he did not respond to text messages and emails.
A CBI spokesperson had said that an FIR registered in Chennai alleges that several of Raja's close relatives and associates had "exponential financial growth under suspicious circumstances" and acquired assets worth several crores "without sufficient wherewithal" during this period.
The agency has alleged that several immovable properties were acquired in the names of Greenhouse Promoters, Kovai Shelters Private Ltd and Shivkamam Trading Ltd.
"It has been further alleged that during the period 1999- 2010, while serving as Member of Parliament and Union Minister for various ministries, he (Raja) had amassed assets and pecuniary resources to the tune of Rs 27.92 crore in his name and in the name of family members and his friends and other close associates which were disproportionate to his known and lawful sources of income," the CBI spokesperson said.
Between September, 2000, and December, 2003, during the tenure of National Democratic Alliance under Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Raja was the Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare.
He was also the Cabinet Minister for Environment between 2004 and 2007 and Minister of Communication and Information Technology between 2007 and 2010 under the previous UPA rule.