Govt orders serious fraud probe into Maytas firms

The government on Monday, ordered a 'serious fraud' probe into Ramalinga Raju's family promoted Maytas Properties and Maytas Infrastructure as it suspected "nexus" between these two and events in Satyam Computer.

"Inspectors investigating the matter in Satyam have informed that there seems to be a nexus between the events that have taken place in Satyam and... Maytas Properties and Maytas Infrastructure," corporate affairs minister PC Gupta told reporters here.

He said it was necessary to obtain information, records and books from the above two companies. The government has "approved and authorised the SFIO inspectors to obtain such books, records, papers as they deem necessary of Maytas Properties and Maytas Infrastructure," he said.

Satyam founder Ramalinga Raju admitted to a Rs 7,800 crore fraud in the IT company on January 7, weeks after a bid to acquire the two Maytas firms failed.

Raju said that he had been cooking the books for years and the Maytas acquisition bid was an attempt to fill fictitious assets with real ones.

The SFIO has already launched a probe into the Satyam fraud and has been given three months to file its report.