The CBI is investigating an unusual request from the protocol department of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) found in the office of Rajiv Gupta of the Nirvana Management Group, prime accused in the CBI’s FIR in the telecom tender scam. Gupta represents Motorola among other companies.According to sources in the investigating team, the letter from the protocol department of the PSU asked Gupta’s secretary for tickets and hotel arrangement for 10 to 12 BSNL officials including its Chairman and Managing Director Prithipal Singh for their proposed visit to Geneva for the International Telecom Union (ITU) exhibition which begins on October 12.Sources say that similar arrangements were made for MTNL and BSNL officials during an earlier visit to Atlanta, USA for the Super Comm exhibition earlier this year are also under the scanner.NMG represents Motorola, Data Access, Xerox and Vocal Tec which have interests in the telecom sector.When contatced, BSNL CMD Prithipal Singh said: ‘‘The protocol officer normally books tickets directly through the travel agent or through the embassy. Nobody has contacted us from the CBI to question us about any such letter. The officer could just be seeking help to know the availability of hotels or some such things because during such exhibitions, hotel availability is quite an issue.’’When asked whether any similar travel arrangements were routed through the NMG for the Atlanta visit, Singh said: ‘‘These telecom company people always participate in exhibitions to show their equipment but I don’t know what arrangements are being referred to. If I travel with you in the same plane, it doesn’t mean we know each other or have something to do with each other.’’ The CBI is currently investigating for corruption in several tenders relating to the two PSUs — BSNL and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL). The CBI has registered an FIR against ‘‘unknown officials in MTNL and BSNL’’ and a few top officials and representatives of Motorola and Bangalore-based United Telecom Ltd (UTL).The case relates the Rs 50 lakh seized by the director of investigations, Income Tax Department and the CBI from an official of UTL when it was being delivered to an official of the NMG.The CBI FIR names Rajiv Gupta of the NMG as the ‘‘middleman/conduit of M/s Motorola India Ltd which uses him for using his influence including offering illegal gratification to influence public servants for getting the work of Motorola executed.’’ The FIR further states that ‘‘recently a payment of Rs 7.18 crore has been cleared by MTNL to Motorola India supposedly by providing illegal gratification to officials of MTNL through Rajiv Gupta.’’
