Recall Vinod Rai, former Comptroller and
Auditor General of India (CAG) and Secretary Banking. He opened the Pandora box
of the 2G scam as CAG of India. When the CAG report on granting 2G spectrum
licenses was first leaked in 2010, the entire country had hailed Vinod Rai as a
crusader against corruption. The verdict in the multi-crore 2G scam has shocked
the nation. After all, how come the special CBI court acquitted 19 accused of
all charges in a scam where notional losses to the tune of Rs. 1.76 lakh crore
were made? Was Rai acting at the instance of Airtel’s Sunil Bharti Mittal, TKA
Nair or P Chidambaram? Vinod Rai doesn’t have any answers. And his clout is
intact as the Supreme Court has appointed Rai as the interim president of the
Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Meanwhile, Finance Minister Arun
Jaitley, who reportedly poses faith in the capability of Rai, had to go and dig
out the file of the bankrupt Dabhol Power Project Company. IDBI had the maximum
exposure of Rs. 1,900 crore (Rs. 19 billion) in the Dabhol project, followed by
State Bank of India Rs. 1,700 crore (Rs. 17 billion), ICICI Bank Rs. 1,300
crore (Rs. 13 billion), IFCI Rs. 600 crore (Rs. 6 billion) and Canara Bank Rs.
350 crore (Rs. 3.5 billion). If the file is investigated thoroughly, one will
be surprised to know how Vinod Rai reportedly tried to convince banks to write
off the huge outstandings. Good sense prevailed, and fortunately, the power
ministry turned down the proposal. This is Vinod Rai!
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