NEW DELHI: Former IPL commissioner Lalit Modi introduced a stunning twist on Tuesday in the row over foreign minister Sushma Swaraj seeking to organize travel documents for him, saying the emails detailing her friendly intervention for him were leaked by media tycoon Rupert Murdoch.

Referring to the publication in Murdoch-owned Sunday Times of the trail of emails charting the way he secured travel documents with the help of Swaraj and British Labour Party leader Keith Vaz, Modi said the publication of the entire cache was the handiwork of the Australia-born tycoon whose papers have not been averse to using unconventional means to access news.

In an exclusive interview to India Today channel at Montenegro, Modi admitted that he was very close to Sushma and her spouse Swaraj Kaushal and their daughter, Bansuri. "We have been very close," Modi said, as he acknowledged the help of other politicians, ranging from Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje to NCP boss Sharad Pawar and his colleague Praful Patel and Congress's Rajiv Shukla.

He accused former finance minister P Chidambaram of hounding him, and alleged that the UPA government had negotiated a secret pact with UK authorities to keep him buttonholed in UK.

He went on to claim that court had awarded him damages for the trouble he had to endure because of the secret arrangement between the government and the US.

Modi's comments come amid reports that Raje had in August 2011 backed his UK immigration application on the condition that her support was not made known to the Indian authorities.

Acknowledging his closeness to the Rajasthan chief minister, Modi said: "Vasundhara accompanied my wife to Portugal."

Modi, who is wanted by the Enforcement Directorate for forex violation cases amounting to Rs 1,700 crore, said: "I challenge the ED to prove any charge against me."