A Raja's explosive book on 2G to release on January 20

Chennai: CBI court might have absolved him of all charges, but former Telecom Minister A Raja is determined to tell his side of the story to the general public on the 2G spectrum allocation.

‘In My Defence’ — the tell-all-tale about the 2G spectrum allocation in 2007-2008 that decimated his party DMK in three elections and cost its ally the Congress its government at the Centre in 2014 — penned by Raja will be released on January 20 at a five-star hotel in New Delhi.

Sources said the date was fixed just a couple of days back and the list of dignitaries for the mega launch of the book is being worked out. In the book, Raja speaks in detail on what transpired between him and the then top brass of the UPA-1 Government while allotting 2G spectrum to companies and his gruelling days at the Tihar Jail in Delhi.

Raja spent nearly 15 months at the Tihar jail, while his party colleague Kanimozhi was behind the bars for almost seven months. However, CBI judge O P Saini acquitted both along with 15 others in the case on December 21.

The book, which was completed almost a year ago, was put on hold awaiting the judgement in the case as both Raja and the publisher felt it should no way influence the judgement or stoke unnecessary controversies. Now that the judgement is out, the sources said, it was decided to release the book with Raja's consent.

The book is expected to bring some embarrassing moments for the Congress as the former Telecom Minister is learnt to have shed light on how he kept the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his senior cabinet colleagues like the then Finance Minister P. Chidambaram in the loop on the 2G spectrum allocation and how he had consulted them at every stage.

“Most of the details about the allocation and the procedure is already in the public domain. The book will throw more light on the conspiracy and Raja's days at the Tihar Jail,” the sources said.

“In My Defence by one of India's most controversial ministers Raja is honest, hard-hitting and with no holds barred, an important and utterly absorbing book,” publisher Penguin had said while announcing the making of the book more than two years ago.

The former Telecom Minister has time and again alleged that he was being made a “fall guy” and his decisions related to the 2G spectrum auction and allocation had the approval of the top brass of the UPA-I government.

After the CBI court acquitted him, Raja had said the 2G spectrum case was part of a “conspiracy” to topple the then UPA-I under which he served as Telecom Minister and opined that it was unfortunate that the Union Government could not sense it.