Tuesday, February 1 2005 16:08 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: CBI yesterday (Jan 31, 2005) claimed that former Union Law Minister Ram Jethmalani's additional Private Secretary (APS) Rajender Singh facilitated a meeting between stamp scam kingpin Abdul Karim Telgi and Delhi police Inspector Puran Singh, who was probing a case relating to the scam in New Delhi.

"Investigation has revealed that accused Abdul Karim Telgi was known to Rajender Singh, APS to Ram Jethmalani, the then Law Minister, Government of India through Anil Gote, MLA of Maharashtra, who happens to be a close friend of Telgi and is at present lodged in Pune jail," the agency said in a chargesheet filed before a designated court in New Delhi in connection with the fake stamp paper racket.

"After the arrest of one Vijay D Patil in a case registered at Defence Colony police station, Telgi contacted Puran Singh, investigation officer of the case, through Rajender Singh and requested him to help Patil in the matter of bail and to keep him and Mohd A Hafiz out of the purview of the investigation of the said fake stamps case.

"After a day or two, Telgi visited Delhi, met Rajender Singh and paid a bribe of Rs 10 lakh to Puran Singh at his residence in Delhi in the presence of Rajender Singh," the chargesheet alleged.

"...Telgi, thereafter developed direct contact with Puran Singh and they became good friends. Whenever Telgi came to Delhi, Puran Singh and Rajender Singh used to meet him in Hotel Diplomat regularly," it added.