CBI to close DA case against Mulayam

CBI will soon close its probe into the disproportionate assets case against Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav as it failed to gather evidence.

CBI sources said here today the agency would close the case within two days as during re-investigations, Yadav's chartered accountants managed to explain every asset which was under the scrutiny of the agency.

This left the CBI with no option but to close the probe.

The sources said Yadav produced enough evidence showing that the assets grew during 1993-2005 because of loans from relatives which were later claimed to be the gifts.

The Supreme Court had ordered a CBI inquiry on March 1, 2007 into the alleged accumulation of disproportionate assets by the Yadav family, on a PIL by an advocate Vishwanath Chaturvedi.

The agency filed a status report in 2007 alleging that the Yadavs owned had an income of Rs 6.23 crore while expenditure was Rs 4.45 crore but they managed to acquire assets worth Rs 4.41 crore and hence Rs 2.63 crore worth of assets were disproportionate to their declared sources of income.

The sources said of the Rs 2.63 crore of alleged disproportionate assets which were inquired by the agency between 1993-2005, nearly Rs 1.4 crore are in the name of Akhilesh Yadav's wife Dimple which had weakened the case.

Last December, the Supreme Court had directed the CBI to go ahead with the probe against Mulayam and his sons Akhilesh and Prateek but dropped the probe against Dimple saying that she was not holding any public office and was only a private person.

Exclusion of Dimple changed course of investigation as allegedly unexplainable assets were in her name, the sources said, adding that the ruling weakened the case.