With Amar Singh, list of Tihar's who's who grows longer
New Delhi, Sep 6 (IANS) Rajya Sabha MP Amar Singh was Tuesday headed to Tihar Jail on charges of corruption, the latest in a long line of high profile politicians and corporate honchos to be housed in the sprawling prison complex in west Delhi.
The former Samajwadi Party (SP) leader and two former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs Fagan Singh Kulaste and Mahavir Bhagora were arrested and sent to judicial custody till Sep 19 for their alleged role in buying votes during the 2008 trust motion in parliament.
They will be in like-minded company.
Since February, Tihar Jail has received a steady stream of VIP residents.
On Feb 2, former telecommunication minister A. Raja was sent to Tihar for his alleged connection in the 2G allocation scam.
Former telecom secretary Siddhartha Behura and Raja's former aide R.K. Chandolia are also lodged in the prison on similar charges.
The 2G scandal also saw DMK MP Kanimozhi and Kalaignar TV chief Sharad Kumar being arrested May 20 and -- sent to Tihar.
Among the business honchos spending time behind the bars for alleged involvement in the 2G scam are Swan Telecom's Shahid Usman Balwa and Vinod Goenka, Unitech Wireless' Sanjay Chandra, Cineyug Film`s Karim Morani, directors of Kusegaon Fruits and Vegetables Pvt Ltd Asif Balwa and Rajeev B. Agarwal.
Three officials of the Anil Ambani Group - Gautam Doshi, Hari Nair and Surendra Pipara - were also arrested for their alleged involvement in the 2G scam.
The other big scandal that scalped several bigwigs was the Commonwealth Games. Congress MP and sacked former chairman of the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee Suresh Kalmadi was arrested April 25.
With him were his colleagues Lalit Bhanot, V.K. Verma and A.S.V. Prasad. Former government official Surjeet Lal, who was attached to the Commonwealth Games, is also in jail.