 | « Back to article | Print this article |
IN PHOTOS: A 'dark Diwali' for these jailed politicians
While the entire country is immersed in the fervour of Diwali, some unlucky ones will be spending the 'festival of lights' in dark and dingy environment.
We are talking about the likes of Suresh Kalmadi, A Raja, BS Yeddyurappa, etc. for whom it will be a Diwali to forget, as they would be spending it in jail.
A plethora of scams, which surfaced in 2011, have plagued the image of not only the ruling United Progressive Alliance government, but also opposition Bharatiya Janata Party.
Rediff.com looks at some of the political honchos who will have a 'dark Diwali' behind bars this year:
Suresh Kalmadi:
Member of Parliament from Pune, Suresh Kalmadi lost the position of the president of Indian Olympic Association after he was found involved in the multi-crore Commonwealth Games Scams.
On April 25, Kalmadi, then CWG Organising Committee chairman, was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation for awarding illegal contracts to a Swiss firm for Timing-Scoring-Result system for the mega games held in Delhi causing a loss of Rs 95 crore to the exchequer.
Kalmadi's membership of the Congress was suspended after being arrested and charged with corruption.
Please click NEXT to read further...
A Raja
Former Union Telecom Minister Andimuthu Raja was arrested on February 2 by the CBI for his role in the 2G spectrum scam, which allegedly caused a whopping loss of Rs 30,985 crore to the exchequer.
The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader is lodged in ward number nine of the Tihar jail, and finds himself as 'one of the top abusers of power' rated by TIME magazine.
B S Yeddyurappa
Bookanakere Siddalingappa Yeddyurappa, the first BJP chief minister of a southern state, will now for sure have to spend his Diwali in jail, after his bail petition was adjourned by the Karnataka high court to November 3.
The influential Lingayat leader was arrested on October 15 and sent to judicial custody after he surrendered following rejection of his bail plea by a Lokayukta court in connection to a case about alleged irregularities in de-notification of government land. The court also issued an arrest warrant against the former CM.
Yeddyurappa has been lodged in the Parapana Agrahara Jail in the outskirts of Bengaluru.
Kanimozhi
DMK MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi, daughter of DMK chief and former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidi, was arrested on May 20 and sent to Tihar jail after her bail plea was rejected in the 2G spectrum case, in which she was alleged to be co-conspirator.
On October 24, the special court hearing the 2G case reserved the bail order for the 17 accused in the 2G case, including Kanimozhi, till November 3.
The other high profile accused in the case include film producer Karim Morani, Kaliagnar TV Managing Director Sharad Kumar, DB Reality and Swan Telecom promoter Shahid Usman Balwa, former telecom minister A Raja's secretary R K Chandolia and former telecom secretary Siddhartha Behura.
The court will decide on November 3 the fresh bail petitions moved by Kanimozhi and four other accused in the 2G case after the CBI did not object to their plea.
G Janardhana Reddy
The mining baron-turned-BJP politician Gali Janardhana Reddy was arrested on September 5 by CBI after former Karnataka Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde indicted him in the illegal mining scam in Bellary, Karnataka.
One of the richest politicians in the country, Janardhana Reddy, along with his brothers, are allegedly at the centre of the massive illegal mining scam that rocked the BJP government in the state.
In 2009, a Supreme Court-appointed central empowerment committee recommended action against Reddy-owned Obulapuram Mining Company.
On September 5, the CBI arrested Reddy, along with his brother-in-law, from their residence in Bellary and was taken to the Chanchalguda prison in neighbouring Hyderabad.
Faggan Singh Kulaste, Mahavir Bhagora and Sudheendra Kulkarni
Faggan Singh Kulaste and Mahavir Bhagora, two former BJP MPs, are currently lodged in Tihar jail for their alleged role in the infamous cash-for-vote scams.
The two former MPs along with Ashok Argal (another former BJP MP) created a sensation by displaying wads of currency notes in the Parliament, which they claimed they received as bribe from a middleman representing former Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh, during the 2008 trust vote to save the UPA government.
The BJP leadership has seriously condemned the arrest of the former MPs, whom they address as 'whistleblowers' who 'exposed a scandal', more so after Amar Singh (another accused in the case) was granted bail 'on humanitarian grounds' earlier this week.
Sudheendra Kulkarni, former BJP advisor and close aide to senior leader L K Advani, is also under judicial custody in Tihar. Kulkarni masterminded a sting operation 'to expose the scam', but was charged of 'facilitating the bribe-giving to the MPs.'