Pradip Baijal’s magic circle
EVERY so often, the media reports that the CBI is preparing to arrest former Telecom Regulatory Authority of India chief Pradip Baijal but it never comes about. If you are well-connected in the government and politics, nobody can touch you. While Baijal eludes the CBI net, Siddharth Behuria, former Secretary of Telecommunication, has been arrested. Baijal, a 1966-batch IAS officer from the MP cadre, got a term extension from 2003 to 2006. Post-retirement, he set up Noesis Strategic Consulting Company along with lobbyist Niira Radia.
The firm’s client list boasts Indian and MNC clients, foreign government regulators, the International Telecommunications Union, the World Bank and so on. He also serves on the boards of GVK, Nestle India and Patni Computers and is an independent consultant and adviser to several countries, including Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia.
In 2010, Baijal’s homes and offices were raided in connection with the investigation into the 2G spectrum scam. The CBI is reportedly restrained from arresting him. Though CBI officials are tight-lipped, it has emerged that there is a very senior leader in the UPA and a senior official in the government who see to this.
EVERY so often, the media reports that the CBI is preparing to arrest former Telecom Regulatory Authority of India chief Pradip Baijal but it never comes about. If you are well-connected in the government and politics, nobody can touch you. While Baijal eludes the CBI net, Siddharth Behuria, former Secretary of Telecommunication, has been arrested. Baijal, a 1966-batch IAS officer from the MP cadre, got a term extension from 2003 to 2006. Post-retirement, he set up Noesis Strategic Consulting Company along with lobbyist Niira Radia. The firm’s client list boasts Indian and MNC clients, foreign government regulators, the International Telecommunications Union, the World Bank and so on. He also serves on the boards of GVK, Nestle India and Patni Computers and is an independent consultant and adviser to several countries, including Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia.
In 2010, Baijal’s homes and offices were raided in connection with the investigation into the 2G spectrum scam. The CBI is reportedly restrained from arresting him. Though CBI officials are tight-lipped, it has emerged that there is a very senior leader in the UPA and a senior official in the government who see to this.
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