New Delhi, Feb. 27: An NGO today asked the Supreme Court for a probe into allegations of collusion between politicians, bureaucrats, journalists and the Essar Group, one of India's largest business conglomerates with investments in oil, steel, energy, ports, shipping, infrastructure and services.
The petitioner, the Centre for Public Interest Litigation, said a special investigation team or the CBI should carry out the probe.
It also sought the cancellation of privileges such as subsidised land, newsprint and houses given to media organisations and journalists who engage in paid news or publish reports to favour companies or accept favours from them.
"This petitioner society, through a confidential source whose identity needs to be fully protected, has come in possession of internal emails and documents of Essar Group of Companies, which indicate how Essar has been cultivating ministers, politicians, bureaucrats and journalists in order to serve its business interests," says the petition moved by advocates Prashant Bhushan and Pranav Sachdeva.
"Essar's internal notes and emails reveal how the company has institutionalised a mechanism to bestow significant favours, monetary benefits and shower gifts on persons with influence.
"Essar, in turn, apparently gets favoured from such influential persons who can take executive decisions, change public policies, raise questions in Parliament, leak confidential government documents and plant stories in the media."
The petitioner claims to possess a report dated 20.04.2012 which, it alleges, indicates that Essar officials meet scores of politicians, bureaucrats and journalists every day to pursue such goals.
It alleges the documents show that Essar prepares a "daily calling report" where briefs are prepared for company officials' meetings with politicians, bureaucrats and journalists.
"The instant case has several similarities with the Niira Radia tape case which showed many illegalities and corrupt activities that have been exposed... include appointment and functioning of regulators for extraneous considerations, appointments of ministers, various contracts, corruptly influencing various decisions of public authorities, and ultimately this hon'ble court was pleased to direct a court-monitored investigation," the petition says.
The petition asks the court to frame guidelines on:
• The access that representatives or employees of corporate groups, consultants, facilitators, middlemen and lobbyists have to ministers and bureaucrats, and the meetings between them;
• Corporate gifts and favours to public servants or those who can influence public servants;
• Paid news or stories planted in the media by corporate houses.
While the PIL did not name any politician or journalist, Union minister Nitin Gadkari held a news conference today to deny any wrongdoing. He accepted he and his family had visited a yacht owned by the Essar group and had travelled from Nice to the French Riviera, where it was anchored, by an Essar helicopter in July 2013. But Gadkari said he was not a minister, MP or MLA at the time and had paid for his trip using family money.
