Saturday, July 31, 2010

Baseless charges of corruption

CWG corruption: Kalmadi says every paisa accounted for
NDTV Correspondent - New Delhi:  Suresh Kalmadi, the chairman of the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee,  has responded to corruption charges. He said he was "pained by the baseless charges of corruption" and that "every paisa spent on the Commonwealth Games was accounted for."
At the centre of the corruption charges, a letter written by Deputy High Commissioner of India in London, Rajesh N Prasad, to the Sports Ministry about allegations of corruption made by the UK government, which says that 25,000 pounds sent from the CWG in India to a company, AM films, in UK, is unaccounted for.

Kalmadi rubbished claims that 25,000 pounds were being paid to the UK-based firm each month. He said the London firm, AM films was picked up after a tender process. The CWG boss also showed mediapersons a letter in which the firm had been recommended by the Indian High Commission in London.
The High Commission denied the charges and told NDTV AM Films was not recommended by them.
Kalmadi also said there  was no cloud cast over the games Organising Committee by the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) report.
CVC report has asked the CBI to register a corruption case against certain MCD officials in connection with irregularities in a tender issued for a Commonwealth Games project worth several crores.
The CVC has found serious discrepancies like award of works at higher rates to bidders, poor quality of construction and grant of work to ineligible agencies in different Games-related construction works being carried out by various departments in the capital.
As per the assessment report prepared by the CVC's Chief Technical Examination Wing, large-scale procedural violations, including corruption, have been noticed in 16 projects.
The cost of the projects has been estimated to be about Rs 2,000 crore.
The CWG Organising Committee boss today said, "The CVC report is on inferior quality of work at the venues. We are now in a time when we have to take over venues. So before that we will ask for all approvals and clearances."

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