16

NEWS

CHENNAI

THE HINDU

FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 2011

Ajit Singh: we openly voted against UPA

Special Correspondent
NEW DELHI: Describing as baseless the latest WikiLeaks claim that his MPs had been bribed ahead of the crucial trust vote in 2008, Rashtriya Lok Dal (RJD) chief Ajit Singh on Thursday said that his party had openly voted against the United Progressive Alliance government at that time. We had opposed the [Indo-U.S.] nuclear deal and after talking to MPs from Opposition parties we had decided to vote against the government, Mr. Singh told journalists. The RLD chief said that his party was open to an investigation into the issue. He pointed out that against the claims made in the U.S. cables, his party had three MPs in 2008 and not four. Interestingly, while Mr. Singh on Thursday said his party had made its position clear days before the trust vote, a report dated July 17 ve days before the July 22 trust vote said that Communist Party of India general secretary A.B. Bardhan met Mr. Singh at the latters residence in a bid to persuade him to oppose the Indo-U.S. nuclear deal and vote against the UPA government. After that meeting, the report quoted Mr. Bardhan as saying: We met today to discuss the Indo-U.S. nuclear deal. While our stand over the deal is clear and known to all, Ajit Singh is yet to take a decision whether to support or oppose the trust vote. I leave it up to him. On July 17, the UPA government also announced its decision to rename Lucknow Airport as Chaudhary Charan Singh Airport in honour of Mr. Singhs father.

Not possible to either conrm or deny allegations

WikiLeaks allegations related to the 14th Lok Sabha, this is a new government: Pranab
Vinay Kumar & J. Balaji
NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee told the Rajya Sabha on Thursday that allegations contained in the cables released by the WikiLeaks related to the 14th Lok Sabha, which was dissolved in May 2009, and the government of the day was a newly elected one, accountable to the 15th Lok Sabha. Responding to the Opposition attack on the UPA government, Mr. Mukherjee said the cables cited by the WikiLeaks website were the correPranab Mukherjee between a addressing the media in spondence sovereign government and its New Delhi on Thursday. mission abroad, and it was PHOTO: R.V. MOORTHY not possible for the govern-

ment to either conrm or deny the allegations. He also asked Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley whether he was satised that whatever has appeared in [a] newspaper report is admissible in the court of law. Sitaram Yechury of the CPI (M) said the expos constituted a humongous indictment of the way this government has been functioning. It represented not only the gross degeneration of political morality but also gross political opportunism of the government while dealing with the trust vote in July 2008. As uproarious scenes continued, the House

was adjourned for the day in the afternoon. CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta raised the issue as soon as the Lok Sabha met. Mr. Dasgupta, who had given a notice for an adjournment motion, said he did so because The Hindu carried an expos unprecedented in the history of Indian democracy. Never has this type of news come in the newspaper. There was a no-condence motion moved by us in 2008, and all Opposition parties voted against the government. In order to win the nocondence motion, Rs. 50 crore to 60 crore was paid to a number of MPs. If the Prime Minister does not deny this,

he should resign immediately, he said. He wondered whether the control room of the government is in Delhi or in Washington. Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh wanted a discussion, saying his party had also supported the UPA-I government. We had also worked to save the government in 2008. Similar allegations may be made against us also, and we will be maligned. We want a discussion on the matter. Janata Dal (United) chief Sharad Yadav described the expos as very serious and said it was not possible that 19 MPs crossed over from the

Opposition to the ruling coalition. It is just not possible without any allurement. He demanded that the Prime Minister come to the House and offer an explanation. Ramchandra Dome of the CPI(M) said the cash-forvote scam was the most shameful chapter of Indian democracy and the shameful revelations proved the Opposition right. Demanding that Dr. Singh own moral responsibility for the episode, he said that whatever happened was a criminal offence and a criminal investigation into it should be held. When the Lok Sabha reassembled after adjournment

in the afternoon, Sanjay Nirupam of the Congress was heard questioning the credibility of the WikiLeaks cables, saying it showed the bankruptcy of ideas in the Opposition. As the uproar and heated exchanges continued, Francisco Sardinha, who was in the Chair, adjourned the House till 6 p.m. When the House re-assembled, almost the entire Opposition, including the BJP, the CPI, the CPI (M), the Shiv Sena, the JD(U), the TDP and the Shiromani Akali Dal, staged a walkout after unsuccessfully demanding a statement from Dr. Singh, who was present in the House.

PM must explain, say Left parties

Special Correspondent with three other parties, demanded on Thursday that the Manmohan Singh government come clean on the WikiLeaks expos that suggested that Members of Parliament were bribed ahead of the 2008 trust vote. The CPI said the Prime Minister and his government had no right to remain in power after this expos. Referring to the report in The Hindu, the leaders of these parties wondered why Dr. Singh was not present in Parliament, especially when the day was earmarked for questions for his ofce in the Rajya Sabha. The Prime Minister must come and explain. Today was his day in the Rajya Sabha and he chose not to be present, CPI(M) MP and Polit Bureau member Sitaram Yechury said at a press conference at the Parliament House attended by H.D. Deve Gowda (JDS), D. Raja (CPI), Nama Nageswara Rao (TDP) and Shailender (SP). The CPI (M) Polit Bureau said the report sent by the U.S. Charge dAffaires should be the basis for the ling of a First Information Report and an investigation against Satish Sharma and Nachiketa Kapur. The Congress leadership, including the Prime Minister, cannot escape their responsibility in this gross act of political malfeasance and bribery. CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat said the cable was not a gment of the imagNEW DELHI: The Left, along

Privilege notice against The Hindu

Special Correspondent
NEW DELHI: Communist Party

of India MP Gurudas Dasgupta on Thursday submitted a privilege notice to the Lok Sabha Speaker against The Hindu following its story based on the WikiLeaks expose. Terming his move a reverse googly, Mr. Dasgupta said the notice, while asking the newspaper to authenticate what it reported, was to compel the government to come before the Privileges Committee to prove its innocence.

Never heard of Kaplan, says Jayakumar

Special Correspondent
CHENNAI: The former president of the Tamil Nadu Youth Congress, Mayura S. Jayakumar, has denied a quote attributed to him in a U.S. diplomatic cable, accessed by The Hindu through WikiLeaks, relating to the practice of bribing voters. In a statement, Mr. Jayakumar said he had never heard of Fredrick J. Kaplan, ofcial of the U.S. Consulate-General here, and never met him or had any conversation with him. The story, Cash for votes a way of political life in South India, had a reference to the Tamil Nadu Youth Congress president (though the name was not mentioned) in a cable sent on May 13, 2009. Noting that he was the Youth Congress president at that time, Mr. Jayakumar said: It is most unfortunate that a quote regarding Karti P. Chidambaram is attributed to the unnamed Youth Congress president, he said, terming the contents of the cable highly malicious and mischievous.

ination of an American diplomat, and that it was additional conrmation on what had already happened. I dont think it can be a manufactured thing or a gment of imagination. We knew all of this had happened. It was a well-known fact; this is additional conrmation, he said. Mr. Karat said the American diplomat was doing his job. They have reported what they have seen. I dont disbelieve the fact that their political counsellor has seen two boxes shown by somebody, he said. The U.S. has reported or recorded what they have seen or heard. Thats not their job to go beyond that. As far as we are concerned, it is a matter of deep concern that this has happened to our Parliament and our democratic system, he said. Echoing similar views, the CPI Central Secretariat said the expos showed the venality of the government. The party feels that after an exposure of such dimensions, the Prime Minister and the UPA government have no right to remain in power. CPI parliamentary party leader Gurudas Dasgupta rejected the argument of Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee that the issue of the 14th Lok Sabha could not be taken up in the current House. Mr. Dasgupta said criminal acts committed outside could not be brushed aside under this argument just as a murder could not be condoned after a lapse of a few years.

Advani says Manmohan has lost moral authority to lead government

B. Muralidhar Reddy
NEW DELHI: The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on Thursday demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Manomohan Singh, saying he lost the moral authority and legitimacy to lead the government after The Hindu expos accessed through WikiLeaks on cash-for-votes in 2008. Addressing a press conference here, NDA working chairman L.K. Advani maintained that the cable by a senior American diplomat to his government vindicated the position taken by the NDA that the government attempted to monetarily induce MPs to vote in favour of the condence vote at the height of the crisis over the India-U.S. nuclear deal. Flanked by leaders of the constituents of the NDA, Mr. Advani ruled out the possibility of the Opposition tabling a no-condence motion against the Manmohan Singh government. Some of us may want an election, but all MPs may not be in favour of it. Total Opposition may not be in its favour, the former Deputy Prime Minister said in response to a question why the NDA did not go for a no-trust vote against the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in the Lok Sabha. He said Dr. Singh should come before Parliament and announce his resignation owning responsibility. The main argument of Mr. Advani was that the cable published

Leaders of the National Democratic Alliance led by L.K. Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Sharad Yadav addressing a press conference at the Parliament House after adjournment of both the Houses on Thursday.
PHOTO: SHANKER CHAKRAVARTY

by The Hindu corroborated the position taken by the NDA that the vote of condence in favour of the UPA-I was inuenced by bribery.

Credibility of The Hindu is high

The senior BJP leader complimented The Hindu on publishing the cable. Asked about the authenticity of the cable, Mr. Advani said: Credibility of The Hindu is high and the paper found it worth publishing it. He said that in the wake of the recent scams that dogged the government, the NDA did not demand the resignation of the Prime Minister. But after the latest expos, the Opposition would have failed in its duty had it not asserted

that Dr. Singh has lost all moral authority. Dubbing the expos the biggest scandal in the postindependent history, Mr. Advani said that any person proud of the Indian democratic system should feel ashamed of it. I have not seen in my political life a government as corrupt as the current one. Right from the top in the government establishment and the party all are involved, he said. A senior leader of the NDA argued that the latest expos was to be seen against the backdrop of a set of allegations made on the eve of the crucial 2008 condence vote. Individuals claiming to be representing the government

not only approached MPs with money but got them to speak to the interlocutors. The targeted MPs produced the cash in the Lok Sabha. What other evidence is needed? he asked. He maintained that the parliamentary committee set up to probe the allegations served no purpose as it was dominated by members of the ruling combine and even its recommendations for a further investigation in the matter was not followed. A statement by the NDA noted that the cable published in The Hindu was a statement sent by an American diplomat to his government. It said: It is contemporaneous in so far as it relates to the year

2008. He was the political counsellor in the American Embassy. The Americans were interested in the vote of condence. One of the offenders was lavishly and liberally working in foreign cell of the Congress. The arrogant Congress displayed the rogue war chests to the American diplomat. He certainly could not have concocted these facts in relation to a friendly party in India. The likes of Sant Chatwal were inducted in order to induce the Akali Dal. The statement maintained that the Finance Ministers defence in the Rajya Sabha that diplomatic immunity prevented the government from investigating the cable was of no avail. The diplomatic immunity extends to protecting the secrecy of the cable. That cable has already been released to the public. The diplomatic immunity does not extend to protecting an Indian offender, who has committed an act of bribery in India. Shri Pranab Mukherjees further defence that the offence vanished with the dissolution of the 14th Lok Sabha is incredible since the offence of bribery, committed in 2008, outside Parliament does not vanish because the 14th Lok Sabha has ceased to exist, it noted. The statement said the disclosure added to the campaign of the NDA against corruption and these allegations of corruption shall continue to haunt this government till it continues.

Nachiketa Kapur was on the inside track with Congress

Special Correspondent
NEW DELHI: Nachiketa Kapur, now in the eye of the WikiLeaks storm, rst came to public notice in 1998 as general secretary of the Indian Youth Congress under its then president, Manish Tewari, currently an MP and national spokesperson of the Congress. In those days, he was associated with the Foreign Affairs Cell of the Youth Congress, and the contacts he built then served him well in later years when he would host dinners at his West Delhi home for the American Council Of Young Political Leaders (ACYPL). These parties would have a sprinkling of Indians working at the U.S. Embassy and prominent Delhi Congress and BJP leaders. The ACYPL, according to its Facebook page, was founded in 1966 as a bipartisan non-prot organisation internationally recognised as the pre-eminent catalyst for introducing rising political and policy leaders to international affairs and to each other, which exists on the basis of generous support from

the U.S. State Department Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and a wide range of corporate, foundation and individual partners and conducts exchanges with over 20 nations around the world. Mr. Kapurs stint in the Youth Congress Foreign Affairs Cell brought him in touch with the former Foreign Secretary, J.N. Dixit, who, after his retirement from the government, joined the Congress Foreign Affairs Department. When Mr. Dixit became National Security Adviser in 2004 after the United Progressive Alliance came to power at the Centre, Mr. Kapur was made a Research Ofcer in the National Security Council. Shortly after Mr. Dixits sudden death in January 2005, Mr. Kapur joined the then Union Minister for Women and Child Development Renuka Chowdhurys staff. He already knew Ms. Chowdhury, as he and some other former Youth Congress members hosted a dinner in her honour in 2004, shortly after she was sworn into the

Council of Ministers. Some years later, he left Ms. Chowdhurys staff on a bitter note, following differences with her and another member of her staff: at that point he was hoping to be upgraded Ofcer on Special Duty. He soon found himself another berth in 2008 as

Deputy Director General (Protocol & Media Relations), Commonwealth Games. The Commonwealth Games authorities were apparently unaware that the allpowerful Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC), in an unusual action, had passed strictures on Mr. Ka-

pur: in 2008, it issued a memorandum not only rejecting his promotion to the post of the Ministers OSD, but adding that he should not be considered for any appointment of a sensitive nature. Asked to comment on the extraordinary memorandum issued by the Ministry of

Baseless, false allegations: Sharma, Kamal Nath

NEW DELHI: Two key players, including former Union Minister Satish Sharma, whose name gures in the Wikileaks cables in connection with allegations of bribing MPs to win the 2008 trust vote, on Thursday denied any role in the episode. Rejecting the allegations, Mr. Sharma said he did not have any aide by the name of Nachiketa Kapur and the allegations were baseless. I have read The Hindu paper. It said I have an aide. I do not have any political aide. There was no aide of me by the name of Kapur as

reported by the paper, Mr. Sharma said. U.S. diplomatic cables released by the Wikileaks claimed that an aide of Mr. Sharma allegedly showed a U.S. Embassy employee. two chests containing cash and said Rs. 50-60 crore is ready for use as pay-offs to win the support of some MPs ahead of crucial vote of condence in the UPA government over the IndoU.S. nuclear deal. Union Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath on Thursday dismissed the WikiLeaks report which alleged that he

was also helping distributing largesse to defeat the trust vote sought by the government. Whatever has been attributed to me, I completely deny. It is completely false, Mr. Nath told journalists here. The WikiLeaks cable said: [The then] Minister of Commerce and Industry Kamal Nath was also helping largesse. Fortunately he could only offer small planes as bribes; now he can pay for votes with jets. Rubbishing the claim Mr. Nath said it was absolutely ridiculous. PTI

Personnel and Training, Mr. Kapur had said at that time that it was done at Ms. Chowdhurys behest, and that he had been victimised by her. However, when the ACCs strictures appeared in Outlook magazine in 2010, the Commonwealth Games authorities were forced to ease him out of the job. If Mr. Kapur has had a chequered career, he has simultaneously been a regular in Delhis whirl of Page Three parties. On Thursday, Congress MP Satish Sharma denied that Mr. Kapur was his aide, as he has been described in the U.S. embassy cable made available to The Hindu by the WikiLeaks. He has also denied working for Mr. Sharma. But clearly, the two are well known to each other. A random search on the internet reveals an item which says he was spotted at the wedding of Mr. Sharmas son, Samir, where the other guests included Rahul Gandhi and other high prole politicians. Another item runs a photograph of Mr. Kapur looking on admiringly (on November 07, 2010) at an exhibition of

paintings by Mr. Sharmas Dutch-born wife, Sterre.

Denies charges
On Thursday, Mr. Kapur denied allegations made in leaked U.S. diplomatic cables that he was involved in paying off MPs to save the Manmohan Singh government in a crucial trust vote in 2008. I do not know anything. I have not witnessed anything, Mr. Kapur told journalists. In the cable he is quoted as saying that a fund of Rs. 50-60 crore had been formed to pay MPs to vote for the government in the trust vote. He also reportedly showed an American embassy staffer two chests containing cash meant for the bribes. On his part, Mr. Kapur denies ever having worked with Mr. Sharma: I am in the same party...but I have not worked with him. Asked if he recalled meeting a U.S. embassy staffer, he said: I dont recall. In 2008, he travelled to the U.S. at the invitation of the State Department to observe the presidential elections there.

Parliamentary panel on cash-for-vote scam recommended further probe

Neena Vyas
NEW DELHI: The case related to the display of large amounts of cash in the Lok Sabha during the condence vote in 2008 is pending with the Crime Branch of the Delhi Police and no charge sheet has been led as yet. It was handed over to the police in January 2009 for further investigations after

the report of the parliamentary committee set up to probe the scandal recommended that the matter related to the money displayed in the House be investigated by an appropriate investigating agency. That report was placed in the Lok Sabha in December 2008. The cash displayed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Ashok Argal during the de-

bate on the trust vote on July 22, 2008, was later kept with the Lok Sabha Secretariat till the inquiry was completed. The cash was then handed over to the Crime Branch of the Delhi Police, then Lok Sabha Secretary General P.D.T. Achary told The Hindu. That report came to the conclusion there was no direct or conclusive proof of the

giver while it expressed doubts about the role of one Suhail Hindustani. This too needed to be looked at by investigating agencies, the report said. Finally, it said Sudheendra Kulkarni (at that time political aide to BJP leader L.K. AdFacts meriting attention vani) was found to have A smaller player in the dra- facilitated the giving of ma, Sanjeev Saxena, was seen bribes to members [of Parliaby the committee as a bribe- ment] as by his own admisBJP allegation that Amar Singh, then Samajwadi Party leader, had paid money to BJP MPs Ashok Argal, Faggan Singh Kulaste and Mahavir Bhagora for the purpose of winning them over to vote in favour of the government.

sion he was present when the alleged bribe was given.

3 dissent notes
Three dissent notes were given Ram Gopal Yadav (Samajwadi Party), Vijay Kumar Malhotra (BJP) and Mohammad Salim (Communist Party of India-Marxist). But all agreed that the entire matter needed to be probed further.
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