Chennai:
Here are the excerpts from A Raja's interview in Tamil to
Puthiya Thalaimurai Channel.
Q: Are you telling me that there has been no loss at all to the government?
A Raja: Both the court and recently Kapil Sibal have accepted that due to all decisions taken under the policy guidelines of TRAI there has been no loss. But my problem is that for the first time in the judicial history of this country, the CAG report which is meant for the parliament is being treated as the basis for a criminal investigation by the Supreme Court. The trial court has rejected the theory of the CAG and CBI over the loss to exchequer, so i am going to drag the Comptroller & Auditor General to the court. I hope the court will permit this. I will do it."
Q: You mean to say you will grill the CAG in court?
A Raja: Of course, because his report has been taken as the basis for my criminal prosecution.
Q: After your arrest, the Supreme Court has reversed all your decisions and it said that your decisions are unconstitutional and arbitrary and you had gifted the spectrum away. Is it a setback for you?
A Raja: The Supreme Court has delivered the judgement without hearing my side, and I have mentioned this before the Supreme Court bench in a curative petition. The Supreme Court has told me that I need not have any apprehension in my mind as this judgment will not affect the trial.
Q: You have been arrested and charges slapped against you. Do you think you were singled out and others were not responsible?
A Raja: First come, first served was followed by Arun Shourie and Dayandhi Maran, and 23 days before taking charge Dayanidhi Maran had allocated spectrum in the same way. There is no problem in the policy this has been agreed upon by Arun Shourie. Before me, spectrum was allocated only to a cartel formed by Airtel, Aircel, Vodafone And Idea, but in my period I opened up the market. But there was never a problem with the policy.
Q: Is this cartel still functioning?
A Raja: Till I stepped down as a minister that cartel was active. Now I don't know what the status is. But I was the one who broke the cartel. I want to tell one thing to the public, even learned people were talking without knowing all the facts. Spectrum is government property. License is issued by the government. It's being used by people but the pricing is fixed by the telecom companies, are you aware of these details or is the public aware of it? The cartel decides the pricing. When I questioned it, they said as a minister you have no right to decide.
Q: Is there any specific reason why you did not apply bail for the past 15 months?
A Raja: There are no specific reasons. I was mentally strong. The media had sensationalised every observation that was made in the court and it was blown out of proportion. The myth was so strong and the courts were not lenient. I had to wait for the effects of the magnitude of 1.76 lakh crore to subside. After I argued in the court and bail was granted to some people and I was waiting for the opportunity and I am hopeful that I will come out clean.
Q: After 15 months of imprisonment your party welcomed you and do you think you have been let down by your friends and allies?
A Raja: I don't want to get into the argument that they dumped me and they did not attempt to save me. The case I am facing a criminal case and I have to face it alone. One thing I will say, I have all the strength by my side to face this case. That strength has been given to me by my leader. I recall a saying of a Tamil scholar: "The hottest place in hell is reserved for those who maintain neutrality at the time of a moral crisis."