Indian textiles minister, Dayanidhi Maran, has resigned from the government for his alleged role in the corruption scandal involving India's telecommunications industry.

News reports said Maran submitted his letter of resignation Thursday following allegations he rigged the sale of telecommunications licenses and bandwidth while he was telecom minister from 2004 to 2007. He is suspected of using his position to coerce a telephone company to sell to a Malaysia-based corporation.

India's Central Bureau of Investigation has said it plans to question Maran on the issue.

The scandal is said to have cost the government up to $40 billion.

More than a dozen other suspects, including another former telecom minister, A. Raja, are accused of conspiring to sell mobile phone licenses at cut-rate prices to the benefit of a few companies. Authorities jailed Raja after he resigned from his post last year.

Maran is a member of the DMK party, which is closely aligned with India's ruling Congress Party.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government has also been dealing with a corruption scandal involving last year's Commonwealth Games in New Delhi.