SIN CHEW DAILY OPINION CORNER
I’m not quite sure whether Deepak Jaikishan is a mat dealer, or a businessman arriving on a flying mat.
On the surface he is just a mat dealer, importing and trading carpets from the Middle East, an identity that is pretty common in this country.
However, he has some uncommon experiences that only a mastery in manoeuvring the flying mat could afford him such mobility.
He admitted involvement in the murder of Altantuya Shaariibuu, and getting private investigator P. Balasubramaniam to issue a second statutory affidavit, overthrowing his own first affidavit. The whereabouts of Bala have since remained in the dark.
Deepak also claimed to have enjoyed unusual relationships with those in power.
He said he wanted to publish a book to disclose some serious secrets. He finally came out with a digital version of “Black Rose”.
The e-book fails to deliver the anticipated insider stories probably because Deepak was not a great writer in the first place, but also more possibly he has created just a smoke screen to mask some more exciting stuff ahead.
Deepak’s effort has not gone down in vain. Other than getting himself shot to stardom overnight, he has also put himself in media limelight at the turn of the year.
As a matter of fact, every bit of Deepak’s moves has been meticulously planned. Having tossed the first shock bomb, he went into hiding, waiting for the tips to ferment. After a while, he would reappear and toss another shock bomb, creating yet another heated topic for gossipers.
This is how he gets the media hooked on him, including the online media willing to offer their utmost co-operation.
As if that is not enough, he has managed to bait the attention of opposition parties, which would tirelessly track him down for more insider info.
Sure enough, these people have also been reciprocally utilised by Deepak.
The question is, why did Deepak come into picture? He is obviously not promoting his carpets here, nor aspiring to become a bestselling author.
Deepak is a business partner of Selangor Wanita Umno chief Raja Ropiaah, whose Awan Megah has a privatisation deal with the ministry of defence to construct a research centre in Putrajaya in exchange for a 200-acre plot of Mindef land in Klang.
Deepak, in return, has struck a deal with Ropiaah to develop the said property under Deepak’s company Astacanggih.
The deal later turned sour; Awan Megah did not award the development project to Astacanggih but sold the land instead to publicly listed Boustead Berhad, the biggest stakeholder of which being Lembaga Tabung Angkatan Tentera (LTAT).
Deepak threatened to pursue the matter through legal means and sue Ropiaah and her company for breach of contract, making some political exposés at the same time.
Now I know the power of the flying mat has been derived from a business-politics collusion.
Boustead was made to offer a solution, paying RM130 million to Awan Megah for the land and another RM30 million to acquire the 80% share of Deepak’s Astacanggih.
If all three parties were happy with the formula, then Deepak would not have come up with these new revelations.
I was thinking, with the help from the media and opposition, whether Deepak has achieved his intended goal.
Sober-minded outsiders would query, where is the Mindef research centre now masked behind all the hoo-hah? Is anyone still keen to make this project a reality? Who will come out with the money?
Since when has our government’s privatisation programme been manipulated in the way of a flying mat that exists only in the Arabian Nights, taking cover behind a thick veil of smoke?
It’s time to get the real picture out of the dark.
