ED team continues questioning of Pondy Lt Governor

Puducherry, Apr 26 (PTI) The Union Territory of
Puducherry Lt Governor Iqbal Singh was questioned by
Enforcement Directorate(ED) officials for the second day
Tuesday over his recommendation for expeditious issue of
passport to Hasan Ali Khan, who is facing money laundering and
tax evasion charges.
Official sources said the four-member team from
Mumbai, which grilled Singh for nearly five hours Monday,
began questioning him at 10.30 am at Governor's House.
The entire proceedings are reportedly being
videographed but Raj Nivas(Governor's House) sources have
remained tight-lipped on it.
Singh landed in a controversy after north-eastern
Indian state of Bihar-based Congress leader Amlendu Pandey
mentioned his name during questioning.
Singh admitted to having recommended expeditious issue
of the passport when he was a Upper House of Indian
Parliament, Rajya Sabha, member in 1997, though he did not
know Khan, on humanitarian grounds as he was told that the
Pune-stud farm owner needed to travel abroad urgently to visit
his ailing brother.
The Prime Minister's Office had last week given
clearance to the ED, a law enforcement and economic
intelligence agency, to record Singh's statement on the issue.
Opposition parties have called for a bandh Wednesday
seeking recall of Singh, who is also caught in a controversy
over the charge that a trust in which his two sons were former
members had been given in-principle clearance by the
administration to set up a medical college without following
due procedures.
Singh has, however, found support in Chief Minister V
Vaithilingam who has said "there is no necessity" for him
to step down, saying he was facing only allegations and the ED
would do "necessary statutory follow up."