NEW DELHI: Former Telecom minister A Raja has written a letter to former prime minister Manmohan Singh seeking his support as he stood vindicated in the 2G spectrum allocation scam case.
Raja’s letter was followed by Singh’s, who said he was happy that he stood vindicated, and extended new year wishes to him.
This exchange of letters comes in the wake of all accused in the case - including Raja and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) MP Kanimozhi - getting acquitted by a Special CBI court, earlier on December 21.
In the letter, dated December 26, 2017, the ex-telecom minister stated that “few powerful individuals launched a propaganda machine” to frame him wrongly in the case but he stood vindicated.
“A decade ago, on this very day, I wrote a letter to you on the subject of issuance of new UAS licences and allocation of 2G spectrum. Neither of us could have imagined the twists and turns in our political and personal lives over the next ten years. A few powerful individuals launched a propaganda machine, magnified a thousand times by a complicit and pliable media, and were able to mislead even the Parliament and the apex judiciary. It cost you the UPA Government, and it took seven years of my life, including fifteen months in jail,” he said in the letter.
Stating that he was a loyal and faithful Congressman, Raja asked Singh to support him in the case as the truth about 2G case was out in the open.
“You will recall that I assured you several times that I had done nothing wrong but rather acted in the national interest and that I would prove this. I also understand the compulsions that prevented you from openly supporting me. Today, I stand vindicated. I hope you will acknowledge that I remained loyal and faithful to you — unlike some senior Cabinet colleagues — and ensured that you did not suffer personal embarrassment in the trial proceedings. Now that the truth about 2G is out in the open, perhaps you too could come forward in my support, which you could not earlier,” the letter added.
"I'm very happy that you stand vindicated. You and your family have suffered greatly in this process but you and your friends are greatly relieved that truth has prevailed. I send you and members of your family greetings and best wishes for the new year,” the former prime minister said, in his letter.
The verdict in the case was announced nearly seven years after the first arrest was made by the CBI in 2011.
The alleged scam relates to the granting of 2G spectrum licence allocations in 2007-08, which caused, according to a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, a loss of Rs 1.76 lakh crore to the public exchequer.
It was among the major corruption scandals that came to light during the second term of the UPA government headed by Manmohan Singh.