Protect truth, not tainted minister: BJP to PM

Source: News Bharati

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The BJP accused the govt of protecting Chidambaram and instead targeting DMK ministers.

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New Delhi: The BJP on Wednesday slammed the Prime Minister for defending Home Minister P Chidambaram in the 2G spectrum scam accusing the government of having double standards on their policies.

BJP spokesperson Arun Jaitley said that the Prime Minister has distanced himself from ground realities and is living in denial. "The Prime Minister says he has full confidence in Chidambaram and he will save his ministers. The Prime Minister instead of protecting tainted ministers should be seen protecting the truth," Jaitley said.

BJP leader Sushma Swaraj said that Chidambaram is equally liable in the 2G scam as former telecom minister A Raja. She accused the CBI of trying to save Chidambaram.

"The CBI has recorded the statements of Arun Shourie and Jaswant Singh, but they have a different stand on Chidambaram," Swaraj said. The CBI had on Tuesday said in the Supreme Court that there was no need to investigate Chidamabaram's role further.

Questioning the UPA's policies, Swaraj said, "This is a unique coalition policy that if a coalition partner is involved then take action, but if one of their own minister is involved then save the minister."

Targeting the Prime Minister for saying that the Opposition is trying to destabilise the government, Jaitley said that the destabilisation within the government is due to its own doings. "We don't even need to destabilise the government, it is collapsing under its own contradictions," Jaitley said.

Demanding a full enquiry into the 2G Scam, Swaraj said that according to the 2G case files, the Prime Minister had full knowledge of everything. As the war of words continues between the government and the Opposition, it remains to be seen whether or not Chidambaram will be probed by the CBI in the 2G scam as the Supreme Court continues hearing Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy's petition on Wednesday.

How accused Chidambaram ‘accepts’ Pranab ‘explanation’?

Source: News Bharati

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How accused Chidu ‘accepts’ Pranab ‘explanation’?

New Delhi, September 29: BJP has slammed Chidambaram’s acceptance and Pranab Mukherjee’s hasty explanation saying that Pranab’s disapproval of the ‘note’ is insignificant as it is a matter concerning government exchequer and not an ego issue between ministers.

Within half an hour of Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee’s statement today, the BJP slammed Congress. BJP spokesperson Ravi Sankar Prasad said, “Home Minister P Chidambaram has no right to accept Mukherjee’s explanation.”

“You are an accused, Mr Chidambaram”, he said directly blaming Chidambaram. “This country is not going to accept this completely untenable explanation of Pranab Mukherjee,” said Prasad.

Congress conducted many meetings during the day. Earlier, after parley for days on the controversy over the 25 March 2011 note from the Finance Ministry to the Prime Minister’s Office.

The document that was prepared on 11 March this year by deputy director P G S Rao in the Finance Ministry’s department of economic affairs on the allocation and pricing of 2G spectrum from 2003 and sent it to the Prime Minister. The document came to the public domain as a response to a Right to Information query and on a platter for litigant Subramanian Swamy and the opposition BJP.

The accompanying information—“A copy of basic facts prepared on allocation and pricing of 2G spectrum is enclosed. This has been seen by the finance minister (Pranab Mukherjee)”—perhaps gave the UPA government the biggest shocker in its second term. Chidambaram stands implicated in the memorandum for his decision on the spectrum pricing when he was the country’s Finance Minister.

The memorandum said, “…the fact that a Telecom Commission meeting on the issue was scheduled on 15 January 2008 was also mentioned; no response, however, was sent by DEA to DoT… Finally, a note was sent by the then finance minister (Chidambaram) to the Prime Minister on 15 January 2008. The note of the finance minister did not deal with the need, if any, to revise entry fee or the rate of revenue share.”

Mukherjee finally came out to give the government’s take on it. Mukherjee read out a written statement within minutes putting the whole blame of the controversial note on a junior official of his ministry.

As Mukherjee concluded his statement Chidambaram immediately commented that he accepts what the Finance Minister said and called this ‘chapter’ closed.

Pranab’s surrendering statement and Chidambaram’s hasty acceptance is being seen as a mystery inside the congress party. People are saying that this is not a question either between Ministers or of the Congress. There is growing demand that Congress kingpins should come clear on the issue by kicking out Chidambaram who is accused in the 2g scam.

WHISTLE-BLOWERS MUST BE HAILED, NOT JAILED: Advani

by LK Advani

In August 2005, the Rashtrapati set up the second Administrative Reforms Commission headed by Shri Veerappa Moily “to prepare a detailed blueprint for revamping the public administration system.”


The Fourth Report of the Commission is titled “Ethics in Governance”. The Preface of this report carries this quotation of Mahatma Gandhi at the top:


As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world -that is the myth of the atomic age – as in being able to remake ourselves.


The Preface opens with this paragraph:


The Mahatma’s vision of a strong and prosperous India - Purna Swaraj – can never become a reality if we do not address the issues of the stranglehold of corruption on our polity, economy and society in general.


The report goes on to describe the crucial role played by ‘whistle-blowers’ in exposing corruption and why therefore legislation against corruption must include laws to protect whistle-blowers. The report says:


Public servants who work in a department/agency know the antecedents and activities of others in their organization. They are, however, often unwilling to share the information for fear of reprisal.


If adequate statutory protection is granted, there is every likelihood that the government would be able to get substantial information about corruption.


The term ‘whistle-blowing’ itself is a relatively recent addition to our lexicon. In the United States, in the post-Watergate era, after the trials and tribulations of Daniel Ellsberg , the man who ‘blew the whistle’ on the so called “Pentagon papers”, whistle blowing has not only been protected by statute, but is also encouraged as an ethical duty on the part of the citizens.


Laws providing such protection exist in the UK, USA, Australia and New Zealand.


The Law Commission in its 179th Report has proposed a Public Interest Disclosure (Protection of Informers) Bill, which provides protection to whistle-blowers. This ARC report goes on to cite the tragic examples of two Indians who while performing this ethical duty of exposing corruption had to pay for it with their lives.


The Report says: “Manjunath Shanmugam working with Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) was a graduate of the Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow. He refused bribes and ignored threats to his life in his fight against adulteration by the petrol pump owners. He paid the price. He was shot dead on 19th November, 2005, allegedly at the behest of corrupt petrol pump owners.


“Satyendra Dubey, working with the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) exposed the rampant corruption in construction of roads. He was also found dead on 27th November, 2003”.


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I have quoted all this above because I hold that in the political history of Independent India, the Cash for Votes Scandal has been the most shameful.


If has been a black spot not only for the UPA Government; it has besmirched Indian democracy as well.


And the three MPs who exposed the Government’s dark deed have rendered a signal service to democracy. And Government, whose official ARC report has emphasized that this kind of whistle blowing merits not only statutory protection but is an ethical act as well. Statutory protection may be necessary for government employees. But for Members of Parliament ethical conduct is a justification by itself.


When on September 6 evening I heard that two of the three MPs who had acted as whistle blowers had been sent to jail, I did feel extremely upset. It made me say in the House on the last day of the session: “I knew that they intended to place the entire bribe money on the Table of the House. If I felt that they were doing anything wrong, as Leader of the Party I would have stopped them. If, however, Government thinks that what they have done is wrong and so has put them behind bars I would like to tell the Treasury Benches, I am even more guilty because I did not restrain them. Send me also to Tihar.”


The three MPs who made history in 2008 by laying bare this scam were Kulaste, a Tribal, Bhagora and Argal, both Scheduled Caste. Obviously those who approached them with cash presumed that these MPs would be vulnerable. Argal is a sitting Member and so his case has been referred by the Speaker to the Attorney General.

Source: lkadvani.in