New Delhi: A key accused in the corporate espionage case on Saturday claimed that it was Rs 10,000 crore scam that he was trying to uncover as police said documents seized from corporate executives related to "national security" that can attract Official Secrets Act provisions. Meanwhile, a local court remanded the five arrested corporate executives in police custody till February 24 for further questioning. Delhi Police also conducted raids here and in nearby Noida looking for stolen documents from offices of petroleum companies. Santanu Saikia, a former journalist, now running an energy consultant running a website, claimed to reporters outside an Crime Branch office that it was a Rs 10,000 crore scam, which he was trying to uncover. "Please quote me," he said as policemen took him in for interrogation.
Reacting to his claim, Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said Saikia was saying such things for covering up his own defence. "Let him spill out all the information he has. The primary accusation is that somebody stole the papers from the ministry. Police is investigating. Anybody has the right to tell everything to the police," he said. Pradhan said police is doing an independent job and everything will be clear after investigation. Law will take its course, whoever they may be, he said when asked about the arrest of executives of private companies. Producing the five corporate executives arrested yesterday before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sanjay Khanagwal, the police said, "National interest was taken for a ride in the case. Documents related to national security have also been recovered. This may attract charges under the Official Secrets Act."
Cracking down Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries (RIL), Ruia’s of Essar, Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta group company Cairn India and Anil Ambani-led Reliance Dhirubhai Ambani Group (R-ADAG) on a suspected case of corporate espionage, Delhi Police on Thursday arrested two Oil Ministry officials, RIL staffer and two other middlemen for allegedly leaking classified government documents to energy companies for money – on Friday, former journalist Santanu Saikia was arrested. Following up on the arrests, raids were conducted at several establishments including a prominent building in Connaught Place which houses offices of a leading private petroleum firm believed to be Reliance Industries and it went on late in the night. In a case reminiscent of the spy scandal in mid 80s, some journalists who claimed to be independent energy consultants, and employees of certain petro companies were also said to have been detained for questioning in the development that has set off sensation in political and corporate circles.
Disclosing details of the case, Delhi Police Commissioner B S Bassi told newsmen that action was taken on a tip off that two persons along with their associates were involved in “procuring, obtaining and stealing the official documents by trespassing into the offices of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas at Shastri Bhawan on February 17.” They used to intrude in the night, he said. “A trap was laid and three persons came in an Indigo car near Shastri Bhawan. Two persons alighted and went inside while the third remained sitting in the car. After around two hours, when the two persons entered the car, all three persons were apprehended,” he said. They were identified as Lalta Prasad (36), Rakesh Kumar (30) and Raj Kumar Chaubey (39). Official documents were recovered from them.
