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Arvind Kejriwal is finally getting caught in his own web of lies, half-truths and self-defined ethical norms.  

 

What he did not disclose is that the sponsor of the India Today Conclave is Aditya Birla group (ABG) which includes Hindalco, a company this is under the Coalgate scam probe. What he also failed to disclose was that India Today’s parent company Living Media India Limited (LMIL) is ABG’s affiliated company. An ABG investment company has the right to hike stake in LMIL from 27.5% to 49%!

 

He failed to disclose how loss-incurring LMIL can splurge lakhs of rupees on a single chartered flight!! More of this later.  Kejriwal, who mostly makes unsubstantiated charges of corruption against select corporates and his critics, has maintained silence over the ABG’s affairs. He, for instance, kept mum on the unearthing of Rs 25-crore cash by CBI in Hindalco’s Delhi office on 16th October 2013. 

A day after the biggest seizure of unaccounted cash in Indian corporate history, ABG confirmed the seizure but feigned ignorance about the origin and existence of cash. This should have propelled Kejriwal into fighting for unraveling the mystery over the origin, ownership and the purpose of the cash. After all, he is a former income tax sleuth, apart from being the crusader against corruption. 

He could have at least substituted activists’ caustic language with polite Gandhian parlance. He could have thus asked whether the cash was generated through questionable means for meeting questionable ends He instead invoked the dictum ‘Silence in Golden’ on this matter. So did the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). Why? Was Kejriwal not taught about the implications of unaccounted cash seizure at the Income Tax Department?     

There is nothing in the public domain which can show that Kejriwal and his AAP demanded a probe into this cash discovery, leave aside initiating public interest litigation (PIL). A search of the cyber space through Google for two days did not throw up a single story that could show that Kejriwal was taken aback by cash discovery at least in the same way as Hindalco.

After the cash seizure, ABG had stated:  “The Company is taken aback by the discovery of cash at one of its offices by the investigating agency. It has taken a very serious view of the matter and has instituted an internal team of senior managers to make a thorough investigation and report its findings at the earliest.”

Where is the report of the investigation? Why did Kejriwal not raise this issue at the India Today conclave? Was he overwhelmed by factors known only to him? Is there more to it than what meets the eye (chartered flight)? 

There is also nothing in the public domain to show that either Mr. Kejriwal or AAP raised an alarm over the Indian Express’ news splash dated 6th January 2014. The story stated that CBI had submitted to Supreme Court a Birla Diary seized during the raid on Hindalco’s Delhi office. The story mentioned about 1000 payments made to MPs and other politicians of several parties by a Birla company trust over a 10-year period.  

The silence of most of the political parties excluding Communist Party of India is understandable. But why Kejriwal & his muck-raking brigade have refrained from demanding the disclosure of the contents of the diary? Who knows it might have some resemblance with the Jain diary? 

By failing to stand up for the truth, Kejriwal has done immense harm to the movement against all forms of influence-peddling including corruption in kind. He should have demanded probe into Birla Diary on the lines of the Radia tapes case. This would have helped truth-seeking analysts in finding out whether there has been a quid pro quo between the political funding and any favour given by the powers that be to any ABG group company. 

Kejriwal, who rants against Mukesh Ambani’s/Reliance group’s investment in media houses, has not uttered a word on the mind-boggling investment by ABG group company, IGH Holdings Private Limited, in LMIL.

IGH holds stakes in other ABG group companies including Coalgate-entangled Hindalco. IGH is thus the shared link between Hindalco and LMIL, which officially provided the chartered plane to self-styled anti-corruption crusader! Kejriwal’s silence looks bizarre because all the information reported in this column is available in public domain. 

When AAP team can lay its hand on secret Cabinet notes, what stops it from accessing press releases issued by LMIL and ABG and the related news. A truth seeker needs to spend a mere Rs 50 to inspect any company’s documents!  Kejriwal & his team thus faced no operational constraint in raising public concern over Hindalco-ABG-LMIL bonding. The reason why it chose to remain silent on Hindalco and ABG-LMIL nexus would thus remain as mysterious as any reckless allegation that Kejriwal hurls against others. 

If AAP rationalizes its silence on this issue now, it would lack credibility. Just as ignorance of law is no excuse, an oversight of a prominently reported issue of grave public importance is a sham.  

For the sake of clarity, the columnist has nothing against ABG or any other corporate group making significant investment in any media house as long as the transaction is in compliance with the laws of the land. In any case, the threat to Freedom of Press is more from editorial mafia and less from diversified conglomerates.   

This issue, however, requires an elaboration to expose Kejriwal’s double standards on alleged influence of corporate on the news and views. 

On 25th November 2013, Kejriwal alleged that Rs 1400 crore had been distributed among a few media houses to defame AAP. He had reportedly tweeted: “Who are these media houses? Any guesses?” 

Why he did not order an FIR against this alleged paid news scam when he served as Chief Minister of Delhi? If he could order an FIR on alleged corruption in gas pricing, there is no justification for failure to file FIR in the Rs 1400-crore media scam. Why he did not alert his former employer, Income Tax Department? 

Why has he not shared with public the details of the mega pay-off? Was this money distributed through cheques or cash? If cash was given, how many vans were hired by whom to pay whom? Did AAP’s cellphone cameras fail to record the pay-offs? Would he exclude LMIL from the list of alleged beneficiaries of this dole-out? Is he keeping secret the list of alleged beneficiaries to arm-twist media into giving favourable publicity to AAP?

Coming back to ABG investment in LMIL, India Today group issued a release on 18th May 2012, disclosing that ABG had agreed to buy 27.55% stake in LMIL. It quoted ABG group chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla as stating: “The media sector is a sunrise sector from an investment point of view. I believe that Living Media India offers one of the best opportunities for growth and value creation.”

Kejriwal should give his verdict whether buying Rs 10-share at a premium of Rs 70755.57 per equity share in a loss-making company is a potential value creation. 

Inadequate information available in public domain shows that LMIL had incurred huge net losses during the last two years. It incurred net loss of Rs 26.30 crore on total income of Rs 341.03 crore in 2012-13. 

Kejriwal should also disclose his stance on LMIL altering its Articles of Association (AoA) to accommodate the concerns of IGH (identified as Investor). Does the clause in AoA conferring the right to ABG investing company to force divesture of two publications amount to ABG’s clout over the operations of LMIL? As Kejriwal is allergic to alleged Ambani’s clout over certain unspecified media houses, he should not appear indifferent when it comes to ABG.

The relevant clause reads as: “In the event that either Bagittoday.com Target Business and/or the Mail Today Target Business (“Identified Business”) do not perform in accordance with the projections provided in the Business Plan and the actual average audited EBITDA for the Financial Years 2013, 2014 and 2015 of such Identified Business is lower by seventy per cent. (70%) of the average target EBITDA of such Identified Business for the Financial Years 2013, 2014 and 2015 as set out in the Initial Business Plan, the Investor shall be entitled to trigger an event of strategic sale of either or both of the Identified Businesses at its sole and absolute discretion at any point of time subsequent to 15 September 2015 by issuing a notice to the Promoters’ Representative and the Company.”

Kejriwal believes in social welfare and yet he overlooks AoA’s clause that indirectly has a bearing on the Right to Education. Let AAP do its home work at least on this count by reading AoA which is available in public domain. 

Kejriwal, there are a few more interesting issues in AoA that you failed to bring to public notice to prove your respect and value for freedom of the Press. This failure only shows that you pick and choose corporate targets for undisclosed motives. And you don’t mind trampling facts in your lust for power under the garb of fighting corruption. 

Instead of fooling gullible people and whipping up passions, you and AAP should affirm your credentials by bringing a facts-based white paper on growing influence of cash-rich conglomerates on media houses. It should also bring out a facts-based white paper on all facets of corruption including the one generated by explosive growth of population, an issue that AAP should have raised in its door-to-door campaign for votes. 

 

(Published at taxindiaonline.com on 14th March 2014)

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