The agency has requested Malaysian authorities for details of financial transactions made by the companies controlled by the trio from January 2007.
The enforcement directorate (ED) has tracked down three Malaysian nationals suspected to be involved in laundering money that former telecom minister A Raja allegedly gained from the sale of 2G spectrum licenses. The agency has requested Malaysian authorities for details of financial transactions made by the companies controlled by the trio from January 2007.
According to ED documents accessed by DNA, the three — Vijaykumar Ratnavelu, Gunasegaran Thiagarajan and Rajesh Ishwarbhai Bhatt — are residents of Kuala Lumpur.
Vijaykumar and Gunasegaran are linked to M/s Wellcom Communications India Pvt Ltd while Rajesh Ishwarbhai Bhatt is connected to M/s Starnet Communications (formerly Ampoules (India) Pvt. Ltd).
“During our probe in the 2G scam, we have found strong leads that these individuals and their companies played a big role in channelising the bribe money. Request has been sent to concerned authorities for assistance in our investigation,” a senior ED official told DNA.
“Investigations indicate that M/s Wellcom Communications and Starnet Communications acted as associates of the companies and persons involved in the scam. They made financial transactions to camouflage real beneficiaries of the 2G scam,” ED documents mention.
Earlier, CBI sleuths had also searched the office of Wellcom Communication, which was registered in Chennai in July 2009.
The agency is trying to get in touch with the company’s managing directors Vijaykumar and Gunasegaran, both considered Raja’s key aides and suspected to have played an important role in moving 2G spectrum gains through hawala channels.
In November 2008, months after Raja distributed UAS licenses at 2001 prices, Wellcom Communications applied for a franchisee.
The company, initially engaged in minor engineering and construction works, was formed in December 2006 with Rs10 lakh capital. This was jacked up to Rs10 crore in November 2008, with an apparent aim to enhance the company’s credibility for another bid - the WiMax bid, said sources.
Wellcom Communications is represented by one of the DMK’s patrons, who holds 15% of its shares.
Sources said Rajesh Ishwarbhai Bhatt, one of the directors of the Starnet Communications, hails from Mumbai. An engineer, he is currently vice-president of Wellcom Communications of Malaysia.
ED report claims that an Israel-based company i.e. M/s Alvarion Ltd., Tel Aviv, is also linked to Starnet Communications. The agency has also sent a request to the Israeli authorities seeking vital information about the company.
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