New Delhi:
Railways Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal today told the Prime Minister and party chief Sonia Gandhi that he had not been in touch for a while with his nephew, who has been arrested for allegedly accepting a Rs 90-lakh bribe from a man who wanted a key posting on the Railways Board so badly that he was willing to pay Rs 10 crore for it.
Mr Bansal, who has offered to resign, told his party's core group that he did not discuss postings in his ministry with his nephew, Vijay Singla.
The party has not decided yet whether Mr Bansal should quit office. The government is beleaguered by an array of corruption scandals in areas ranging from coal to telecom. Now, the railways is added to that list.
In a statement earlier today, Mr Bansal said, "I look forward to an expeditious investigation by CBI in the matter."
(Read full statement)Mahesh Kumar, who was recently made a member of the Railways Board, reportedly wanted Mr Singla's help to secure a position where he would be in charge of clearing all electrical contracts, which would run into hundreds of crores.
The Board, which has seven members, reports directly to the Railways Minister and this year, it will manage a budget of Rs 63,363 crore or $11.5 billion.
(Read: India's Railway Board - why it is so powerful)Mr Kumar's alleged agreement with the minister's nephew, which included more than one middleman, was for Rs 10 crore, said the CBI. The Rs 90 lakh that he was allegedly caught accepting was just the first installment.
The latest controversy should hurt as the coveted Railways portfolio returned to the Congress after 17 long years; last, it was held by Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress before it pulled out of the UPA. More importantly, the allegations are likely to dent Mr Bansal's clean image.