April 18, 2002 | 1120 IST
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Money > Business Headlines > Report April 18, 2002 | 1120 IST |
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Home ministry for further probe into Jet linksBS Political Bureau The home ministry has directed intelligence agencies, including those related to economic offences, to launch a vigorous probe into the alleged links of Jet Airways with the Pakistan-based underworld even as the evidence so far is not enough to initiate criminal proceedings against the airline. Official sources in the home ministry maintain that the evidence gathered so far were merely circumstantial and legally untenable. "The Intelligence Bureau had found certain print-outs of telephone calls between Jet Airways chief Naresh Goyal and Dawood Ibrahim, but these are not enough to initiate criminal proceedings," the officials said. Sources in the government feel that though the process of delicensing the airlines falls in the jurisdiction of the Director General of Civil Aviation under the civil aviation ministry, the prima-facie evidence against the airline at this stage, despite being genuine, would be inadmissible in the court as it is inadequate. The IB had communicated the evidence of the telephone calls when the home ministry referred a request by the civil aviation ministry seeking security clearance for the Jet Airways recently. "It is mandatory in the airline's case to seek clearance from the home ministry which refers the issue to various agencies, including the Research and Analysis Wing and Directorate of Enforcement" an official said. The home ministry compiled these reports and sent it to the civil aviation ministry for further action. Jet Airways found itself in trouble after it effected a change in the board of directors and inducted film and political personalities like Shatrughan Sinha and Javed Akhtar. This change in the board of directors necessitated the airline's management to apply for security clearance as mandated by the norms set by the DGCA. Powered by ALSO READ:
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