NEW DELHI, Feb 12 � The CBI has begun an in-house probe into pay-off allegations concerning a USD 100 million Air India contract in 2007 when Praful Patel was Civil Aviation Minister, a charge which he has rubbished as �baseless and preposterous�.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) had approached the probe agency through diplomatic channels informing them about the scandal and allegations made against Indo-Canadian businessman Nazir Karigar who claimed that he had paid a bribe of 250,000 dollars to an aide of Patel, official sources said today. The contract has since been scrapped. � PTI
