New Delhi, Jun 30: Challenging Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's contention that corruption cases under UPA were “mere aberrations”, BJP today said his “conspiracy of silence, culpable inaction and gross indifference” had led to graft in 2G spectrum allocation and CWG projects.
“Corruption is not an aberration Dr Manmohan Singh but the most defining and yet deplorable feature of your government. There was no state of uncertainty but public money was systematically looted because of conspiracy of silence, culpable inaction and gross indifference by you and your government,” BJP Chief spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said.
Singh had stated at an interaction with a group of editors yesterday that “instances of corruption (in UPA-II government) were just aberrations”.
BJP described Singh's replies to the editors as “not only unsatisfactory, highly elusive but also deeply deplorable”.
Insisting that Singh was in “silent mode” for a long time, the opposition refuted as “an alibi of delusional” his comments that the “world of uncertainty under which the UPA was operating in assessing its policy decisions and their implementations needs to be factored in”.
BJP posed some of its own questions to the Prime Minister on his role in 2G scam, Commonwealth Games and appointment of P J Thomas as CVC among others.
Referring to Singh's letter dated November 11, 2007, to then Telecom Minister A Raja on 2G licences, Prasad said, “When A Raja refused to follow his directive then under what state of uncertainty he did not take action expected of him as a Prime Minister when Rs 1.7 lakh crore (approx) of public money was being looted?”
“What state of uncertainty compelled the Prime Minister not to take note of a series of objections raised by senior civil servants in the Ministry of Telecom and Ministry of Finance that spectrum - a precious wealth of the nation - was being sold very cheap in the 2G licences?” Prasad asked.
He also sought to know why Singh had declared Raja innocent on October 26, 2009 when the CBI inquiry had already been ordered a week before.
“The people of the country have every bona-fide reason to infer that the government headed by Manmohan Singh is the most corrupt government since independence,” Prasad said.
The opposition alleged that most of the clearances during the Commonwealth Games preparations for enhanced fund allocation and “resulting corruption” were approved by the cabinet sub-committee, Group of Ministers, Expenditure Finance Committee, PMO and lastly the Prime Minister.
“What is the state of uncertainty because of which in spite of his public declaration Manmohan Singh is refusing to take action in the light of Shunglu Committee Report whereby serious strictures have been passed against the Sheila Dikshit government and other high-ups,” Prasad said.
On the appointment of Thomas as CVC, BJP asked why Singh was “forced to appoint” him when he was facing prosecution in a corruption case.
“What prevents you, Manmohan Singh, from telling the nation as to how many Indians are being prosecuted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act as amended in 2005 and in respect of how many the foreign banks have been approached to take follow up actions where they are having their accounts?”Prasad said. PTI
