Kalmadi demands JPC to probe CWG scam

RANCHI - A day after two of his close aides and senior officials of the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee were arrested, Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president and MP Suresh Kalmadi Thursday demanded a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) probe in the Games scam to ensure an “impartial” inquiry.

“As the central government has no faith in the IOA, similarly IOA has no faith in the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) for conducting investigation in the CWG matter, a JPC should be instituted to probe the alleged CWG abnormalities in an impartial manner,” Kalmadi told reporters here.

The Organising Committee’s former officials - secretary general Lalit Bhanot and director general V.K.Verma - were arrested Wednesday for the alleged financial irregularities in a contract with a Swiss company.

Noting the construction and other infrastructure for the CWG was not carried out by the IOA but by an independent agency under the supervision of the government, Kalmadi sought to know how the IOA could be held guilty. Moreover, the IOA has handed over all the documents related to the CWG to the CBI and is assisting and cooperating with them in everything, he said.

Kalmadi also questioned why the investigating agencies were calling only the organising committee (OC) officials for their probe into the scam.

“I am surprised why officials of the OC are being called by the investigating agencies. No decision was taken by any individual. There was a financial committee, financial sub-committee and executive committee. Central government secretaries were also part of the decision-taking bodies,” he said.

He said: “It was a collective decision of the committees and no individual took any decision, then why officials of OC are only being targeted?”

Kalmadi arrived here Wednesday night for the ongoing National Games. He is likely to attend the National Games closing ceremony Saturday.