Maran may be dropped from Cabinet: Report

(source: zeenews.com)

New Delhi: Facing the heat over his alleged role in the 2G sacm, Union Textile Minister Dayanidhi Maran may be dropped in the next cabinet reshuffle, reports claimed Tuesday.

Maran is arriving in Delhi and is expected to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. As per reports the CBI may name him in the FIR in the Aircel-Maxis deal.

Yesterday, the Prime Minister was asked whether he had sought Maran’s resignation and he said, “All these matters are being looked into by law enforcement agencies. They should be allowed to do their work without fear or favour.”

The CBI has been closing in on Maran. Especially, after the investigating agency recorded the statement of former Aircel chief C Sivasankaran in connection with its ongoing investigations in the second generation spectrum allocation scam during UPA-I regime.

CBI sources said Sivasankaran was asked to clarify certain questions and series of events involving alleged irregularities in spectrum allocation to Aircel, a telecom firm founded by him and later sold to Malaysian firm Maxis.

Sivasankaran heads USD three billion conglomerate, Siva Group, with operations in realty, telecom, shipping, energy and agri exports and e-education/software.

They said Sivasankaran had alleged that he was forced by DMK MP and Textile Minister Dayanidhi Maran to sell his stake in Aircel to Maxis.

Sivasankaran had alleged his applications for licences were rejected when Maran was the telecom minister in 2006, forcing him to sold his company to Maxis, whose owner is considered to be close to Maran and his brother Kalanidhi, who owns Sun TV.

After A Raja and Kanimozhi, Maran is the third DMK leader under the scanner for telecom deals. Action against him may further complicate the relations between the Congress and the Dravidian party.

Maran is the grand nephew of DMK chief M Karunanidhi.