TOI exclusive on corporate espionage: What triggered the crackdown
Police take away Asharam Singh and two others, accused of leaking petroleum ministry documents, from Shastri Bhavan in New Delhi on Friday.(PTI photo)
NEW DELHI: The massive crackdown on corporate espionage in crucial ministries was the result of a four-month-long investigation conducted by the intelligence agencies at the behest of national security adviser Ajit Doval.
Doval raised an alarm over the frequent reporting of classified matters in the media. A TV channel's report saying the Prime Minister was shown images of INS Arihant, a nuclear submarine, at a DRDO function proved to be the last straw, said sources. He then asked RAW to initiate action, TOI was told.
The NSA is learnt to have written to the cabinet secretary, Ajit Kumar Seth, sometime in mid-October, saying such reports based on classified information undermined national security and were an offence under the Official Secrets Act. Doval also pointed out that most leaks came from government offices and there was a need to follow official protocol related to classified information.
Seth then took up the matter with the ministers. The probe led to the petroleum ministry where Asharam, a peon with access to petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan office, turned out to be one of the key men in the racket.
READ ALSO: How it unfolded, what was leaked
Ministries and other government departments were alerted and asked to beef up their security. Once the probe began, dozens of phones were officially intercepted, after clearance from the home ministry. The investigators now have about a hundred hours of recordings to back their case.
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Sources said on several occasions during the past four months fake papers were made to look like important ones to fool people under suspicion and even mock conversations were carried out to ensnare suspects. When such papers were leaked, the agencies could narrow down their probe.
Finally, armed with concrete leads and evidence, the agencies briefed ministers and bureaucrats. The NSA was informed about the breakthrough and the PM given the news. Decks were then cleared for Delhi Police commissioner B S Bassi to be brought into the picture in the second week of February. The initial choice was CBI but a top home ministry official had the last word and Bassi was asked to launch the crackdown.
The commissioner discussed the issue with two special commissioners and assigned the probe to the crime branch. The agencies also handed over crucial evidence, including call detail analysis, photographs, phone numbers and addresses of the suspects to the police. The crime branch then moved in and picked up the accused.
Doval raised an alarm over the frequent reporting of classified matters in the media. A TV channel's report saying the Prime Minister was shown images of INS Arihant, a nuclear submarine, at a DRDO function proved to be the last straw, said sources. He then asked RAW to initiate action, TOI was told.
The NSA is learnt to have written to the cabinet secretary, Ajit Kumar Seth, sometime in mid-October, saying such reports based on classified information undermined national security and were an offence under the Official Secrets Act. Doval also pointed out that most leaks came from government offices and there was a need to follow official protocol related to classified information.
Seth then took up the matter with the ministers. The probe led to the petroleum ministry where Asharam, a peon with access to petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan office, turned out to be one of the key men in the racket.
READ ALSO: How it unfolded, what was leaked
Ministries and other government departments were alerted and asked to beef up their security. Once the probe began, dozens of phones were officially intercepted, after clearance from the home ministry. The investigators now have about a hundred hours of recordings to back their case.
Sources said on several occasions during the past four months fake papers were made to look like important ones to fool people under suspicion and even mock conversations were carried out to ensnare suspects. When such papers were leaked, the agencies could narrow down their probe.
Finally, armed with concrete leads and evidence, the agencies briefed ministers and bureaucrats. The NSA was informed about the breakthrough and the PM given the news. Decks were then cleared for Delhi Police commissioner B S Bassi to be brought into the picture in the second week of February. The initial choice was CBI but a top home ministry official had the last word and Bassi was asked to launch the crackdown.
The commissioner discussed the issue with two special commissioners and assigned the probe to the crime branch. The agencies also handed over crucial evidence, including call detail analysis, photographs, phone numbers and addresses of the suspects to the police. The crime branch then moved in and picked up the accused.
Corporate espionage case: List of leaked papers
The total number of arrests in the case has gone up to 12.
NEW DELHI: The sensational petroleum ministry document leakage case assumed wider dimensions on Friday as seven more people were arrested during the day.
Many classified documents are reported to be allegedly leaked in this corporate espionage scandal.
READ ALSO: What triggered the crackdown
SIT's attention now focused on Saikia and Jain
Some of the important papers which have been leaked are as follows:
*A two-page input to FM's Budget speech on national gas grid
*Papers marked "secret" on ONGC Videsh
*Letter from Nipendra Misra, principal secretary to the PM
*Papers and presentations from oil ministry's exploration division and monthly gas report
*A brief on "opportunities in Sri Lanka"
* A notice on an urgent meeting
*Papers from coal and power ministries have also been leaked
Many classified documents are reported to be allegedly leaked in this corporate espionage scandal.
READ ALSO: What triggered the crackdown
SIT's attention now focused on Saikia and Jain
Some of the important papers which have been leaked are as follows:
*A two-page input to FM's Budget speech on national gas grid
*Papers marked "secret" on ONGC Videsh
*Letter from Nipendra Misra, principal secretary to the PM
*Papers and presentations from oil ministry's exploration division and monthly gas report
*A brief on "opportunities in Sri Lanka"
* A notice on an urgent meeting
*Papers from coal and power ministries have also been leaked
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Corporate-espionage-case-List-of-leaked-papers/articleshow/46318659.cms
Corporate espionage case: 10 developments you should know
Accused in petroleum ministry document leak coming out of Patiala House Court in New Delhi on Friday. (PTI photo)
NEW DELHI: In a sensational twist to the corporate espionage case in which sensitive petroleum ministry documents were being leaked, the crime branch on Friday evening arrested senior executives of India's top private energy companies - Reliance Industries, Essar, Cairns India, ADAG Reliance and Jubilant Energy. Here are ten developments in the case so far which you must know:
1. The total number of arrests in the case has gone up to 12.
2. The cops are also looking for another petroleum ministry employee, Lokesh, who is currently absconding.
3. The probe has also revealed that coal and power ministry papers were being similarly leaked.
READ ALSO: What triggered the crackdown
SIT's attention now focused on Saikia and Jain
4. The arrested petroleum ministry staffers also confessed that they tried to access the defence ministry but failed because the "modules" of that office were different and difficult to crack.
5. Police have denied reports appearing on TV channels that the petroleum ministry had been bugged.
6. TOI has accessed the FIR registered in case which give details of the papers recovered from the accused and reveals that even the input material on national gas grid for the FM's forthcoming Budget speech had been leaked out.
READ ALSO: List of leaked papers
7. The police brass has now formed a special investigation team (SIT) headed by joint CP Yadav and comprising additional commissioner Ashok Chand, DCP Bhisham Singh, ACP K P S Malhotra, inspectors Sunil and Kulbir Singh and sub inspectors Ritesh and Neeraj and a few more cops to carry out systematic investigations in the probe. If required, personnel of the cyber cell will be roped in as well.
8. Four accused in the corporate espionage case - former multi-tasking staffers at Shastri Bhawan, brothers Lalta Prasad, Rakesh Kumar, energy consultant Prayas Jain and former newspaper reporter Santanu Saikia - were on Friday remanded to police custody till February 23 by a trial court after police said the accused had to be interrogated on various aspects of the case.
The other three accused, Ishwar Singh, Asharam and Rajkumar Chaubey, were sent to two weeks of judicial custody after police said they were not required for custodial interrogation.
9. Cops tapped senior executives' phones
The ongoing probe into leaked government documents is likely to lead to the arrest of more senior executives of top energy companies.
Investigative agencies have in their possession more than 100 hours of recorded phone conversations of five people connected with the racket, including two executives of a top energy company. These tapes indict a number of senior corporate executives, police said.
While one of two energy company officials whose phones were tapped has reportedly gone missing. The other has told cops that he has swine flu and would join investigations later.
These conversations were tapped by agencies in December and January in which the exchange of papers and the considerations involved are mentioned. The cops have also got to know around 12 bank accounts in which money was being transferred by the information seekers.
10. Govt says it is committed to transparency
The Centre on Friday said the action is aimed at inspiring "confidence in the minds of people that any wrongdoing shall not go unnoticed or unpunished".
Speaking to the media on the issue, commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman said: "I think the government has taken a firm decision to act on this. The minister himself has said that firm action will be taken and that is the right take. It is definitely not in the interest of the country. The investigation will tell us whether it is an inherited issue. I am happy to say that this is something which has been very closely adhered to. We are on the side of keeping processes transparent and not on the side which will lead to corrupt practices."
1. The total number of arrests in the case has gone up to 12.
2. The cops are also looking for another petroleum ministry employee, Lokesh, who is currently absconding.
3. The probe has also revealed that coal and power ministry papers were being similarly leaked.
READ ALSO: What triggered the crackdown
SIT's attention now focused on Saikia and Jain
4. The arrested petroleum ministry staffers also confessed that they tried to access the defence ministry but failed because the "modules" of that office were different and difficult to crack.
5. Police have denied reports appearing on TV channels that the petroleum ministry had been bugged.
6. TOI has accessed the FIR registered in case which give details of the papers recovered from the accused and reveals that even the input material on national gas grid for the FM's forthcoming Budget speech had been leaked out.
READ ALSO: List of leaked papers
7. The police brass has now formed a special investigation team (SIT) headed by joint CP Yadav and comprising additional commissioner Ashok Chand, DCP Bhisham Singh, ACP K P S Malhotra, inspectors Sunil and Kulbir Singh and sub inspectors Ritesh and Neeraj and a few more cops to carry out systematic investigations in the probe. If required, personnel of the cyber cell will be roped in as well.
8. Four accused in the corporate espionage case - former multi-tasking staffers at Shastri Bhawan, brothers Lalta Prasad, Rakesh Kumar, energy consultant Prayas Jain and former newspaper reporter Santanu Saikia - were on Friday remanded to police custody till February 23 by a trial court after police said the accused had to be interrogated on various aspects of the case.
The other three accused, Ishwar Singh, Asharam and Rajkumar Chaubey, were sent to two weeks of judicial custody after police said they were not required for custodial interrogation.
9. Cops tapped senior executives' phones
The ongoing probe into leaked government documents is likely to lead to the arrest of more senior executives of top energy companies.
Investigative agencies have in their possession more than 100 hours of recorded phone conversations of five people connected with the racket, including two executives of a top energy company. These tapes indict a number of senior corporate executives, police said.
While one of two energy company officials whose phones were tapped has reportedly gone missing. The other has told cops that he has swine flu and would join investigations later.
These conversations were tapped by agencies in December and January in which the exchange of papers and the considerations involved are mentioned. The cops have also got to know around 12 bank accounts in which money was being transferred by the information seekers.
10. Govt says it is committed to transparency
The Centre on Friday said the action is aimed at inspiring "confidence in the minds of people that any wrongdoing shall not go unnoticed or unpunished".
Speaking to the media on the issue, commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman said: "I think the government has taken a firm decision to act on this. The minister himself has said that firm action will be taken and that is the right take. It is definitely not in the interest of the country. The investigation will tell us whether it is an inherited issue. I am happy to say that this is something which has been very closely adhered to. We are on the side of keeping processes transparent and not on the side which will lead to corrupt practices."
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Corporate-espionage-case-10-developments-you-should-know/articleshow/46318714.cms?prtpage=1
| Saturday , February 21 , 2015 |
Officials of Ambani firms, others held |
| Imran Ahmed Siddiqui |
 Former journalist Santanu Saikia after his arrest on Friday. (AFP) The scandal appeared to be spreading from the petroleum ministry to other departments, too, with the police telling a court that documents of the coal, power and defence ministries were found in the possession of some the accused. Among those arrested tonight were Shailesh Saxena of Reliance Industries Ltd, Vinay Kumar of Essar, K.K. Naik of Cairn India, Subhash Chandra of Jubilant Energy and Rishi Anand of Reliance ADAG. The number of arrested suspects has touched 12, including Santanu Saikia, a former mainstream journalist who runs an energy portal now, and Prayas Jain, an energy consultant. Saxena is manager, corporate affairs, Reliance Industries, owned by Mukesh Ambani. Vinay Kumar is deputy general manager at Essar, the group run by the Ruias. Naik is general manager with Cairn India, part-owned by Anil Agarwal of the Vedanta Group. Chandra is a senior executive with Jubiliant Energy, owned by the Bhartias who also operate the Domino's and Dunkin' Donuts chains in India. Anand is deputy general manager at Reliance ADAG, owned by Mukesh's brother Anil Ambani. "We have found that confidential documents that had been stolen or procured from the petroleum ministry were obtained by independent energy consultants and certain companies working in the field of energy," a police officer said, declining to identify the firms. The five executives have been charged under sections 411 (dishonestly receiving stolen property) and 120B (criminal conspiracy). "A probe is on to find out whether these five persons were acting in collusion with senior executives of their individual companies. Action against their superiors will follow if we find evidence against them," the officer said. Delhi crime branch officials are still questioning over 10 people, including employees of some other private companies, at its Chanakyapuri office. "The arrested persons had stolen a huge number of incriminating documents from the petroleum ministry, which include documents on the national gas grid that was to be used by the (Union) finance minister in his budget speech next week (February 28)," said the FIR registered by the crime branch. But the gas grid itself is not a new concept. A possible sensitive element could be potential incentives that the budget will offer but it will be unusual for the finance ministry to have already sent the details of such sops to the petroleum ministry, from where the data were allegedly stolen. Among the other confidential documents listed by the police are photocopies of papers on planning, analysis, exploration, opportunities in Sri Lanka, monthly gas reports and documents signed by Nripendra Misra, principal secretary to the Prime Minister. Saikia and Jain were taken into custody earlier in the day in connection with suspected theft and sale of documents from the petroleum ministry at Shastri Bhavan. Five people had been arrested yesterday. "Saikia is now working as an energy consultant. He was detained on Thursday night and was arrested this morning after sustained interrogation," said Ravindra Yadav, joint commissioner (crime branch). Both have been charged with cheating and criminal conspiracy. The police, however, did not disclose the specific roles allegedly played by Saikia and Jain. Neither had any of the arrested been charged under the Official Secrets Act till this evening. Saikia's wife Sabina Sehgal Saikia was among those killed in the 26/11 attacks on the Taj hotel. The police claimed that Santanu Saikia acted as a link between some companies that wanted to gain access to confidential documents and those who stole the documents. The police said a huge cache of documents was found in Saikia's possession. This in itself is not unusual as several journalists do access documents deemed confidential by the government and file them for reference. The counsel appearing for Saikia told a court that his client was a journalist and the documents he possessed related to the discharge of his professional responsibilities. The defence counsel contended that the police had to first show how the documents fitted the "classified" label. "We are analysing whether these documents fall under the Official Secrets Act," Delhi police commissioner B.S. Bassi said. The Official Secrets Act gives the police sweeping powers to arrest suspects and keep them in custody for any length of time. An officer said seven to eight companies, whose names had been given to the court in a sealed envelope, were under the scanner. The companies are said to have paid between Rs 50,000 and Rs 1 lakh for some documents. |