15 May 2012 Last updated at 07:36 ET

Bharti Airtel investigated for money laundering

Bharti Airtel said it had handed all relevant information over to authorities

Telecoms giant Bharti Airtel is being investigated by Indian authorities for money laundering and breaking foreign exchange rules, a minister has said.

Junior Finance Minister S Palanimanickam said the Directorate of Enforcement was investigating the case, but gave no further details.

Bharti Airtel shares fell 5% in early trading but recovered quickly to end the day down 1%.

The company said it was co-operating with authorities.

"We have already provided all relevant details asked for by the relevant authorities in this matter and will be happy to co-operate further, should the need arise," it said in a statement.

Bharti operates across 20 countries in Asia and Africa and claims to have almost 250 million customers.

The company, which was a pioneer for low-cost telecoms in India, is controlled by billionaire Sunil Mittal.