The CBI on Wednesday registered a case against former Union Textiles Minister Shankarsinh Vaghela and five others for selling over 27,000 sq m of prime National Textile Corporation (NTC) property in Mumbai to a private company, allegedly at “throwaway prices” during the UPA-1 regime, causing a loss of over ₹700 crore to the Exchequer.

The CBI also raided the residences of Vaghela and the other accused. The former Gujarat Chief Minister claimed the raid was aimed at diverting attention from the Sushma Swaraj-Lalit Modi-Vasundhara Raje controversy. Vaghela, who once mentored Prime Minister Narendra Modi, had subsequently joined the Congress. At present, he is the Leader of Opposition in the Gujarat Assembly.

Reacting to the CBI raids that lasted about 10 hours, Vaghela told reporters here the Central agency had found “nothing” and that he “fully cooperated” with it.

He further accused the BJP of trying to divert people’s attention from the Lalit Modi controversy. The BJP is losing ground both in Gujarat and at the Centre, he claimed, adding this was the reason for “sponsoring” the CBI raids on him as “political vendetta”. “They have recovered nothing except a few old visiting cards and letterheads of the Textile Ministry," the former BJP-RSS strongman said.

The CBI has filed an FIR against Vaghela, former NTC chairman Ramachandran Pillai and other officials in connection with irregularities in land deals in Mumbai.

In a combative mood, Vaghela, who had a fallout with Modi and the Sangh Parivar in the late 1990s before joining the Congress, challenged the Centre to “prove me wrong”.

“This is an attempt at character assassination at a time when the Congress is doing well for the upcoming local bodies elections in Gujarat,” he said outside his bungalow after the CBI completed the raids.

Political reasons “The BJP has realised that the Congress is set for a return to power in Gujarat in 2017 and they will be kicked out of their home. The “masters” of CBI were directing the officials. Somebody was monitoring the raids with constant calls to the CBI officials. This has become the BJP Bureau of Investigation,” he alleged.

NTC was faced with losses of ₹1,800 crore, and it was during his tenure as Union Textiles Minister that the government was able to sell the company’s defunct mills and recover as much as ₹2,000 crore, he said.

The Congress high-command has expressed its support, he said, adding: “We will now explore our legal options.”

comment COMMENT NOW