Congress seeks probe into bribe charge against PM

The Congress party on Wednesday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should get a fair probe done into allegations that he took money from two corporate houses -- Birla and Sahara groups.

At a press conference called within an hour of a BJP press conference, where the ruling party dismissed allegations against the Prime Minister, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said the BJP should have answered whether Modi took money or not.

Surjewala said the BJP was "perturbed" and that "they did not answer whether or not Modi took money".

The Congress spokesperson sought a probe, but added: "CBI cannot probe the Prime Minister."

While not demanding Modi's resignation directly, Surjewala cited the example of Congress President Sonia Gandhi, who had resigned when the office of profit issue came up in 2006, and BJP veteran L.K. Advani had resigned as an MP in 1996 following allegations of his involvement in the infamous Hawala scam.

"We are asking valid questions. Do not get angry, just answer the questions. The Prime Minister should come forward and answer whether he took money from Birla and Sahara or not," he said.

At a public rally in Gujarat's Mehsana, Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday alleged that the Sahara Group paid Rs 40 crore to Modi during his tenure as Gujarat Chief Minister.

Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad soon after dismissed the allegation calling it "baseless" and added that Gandhi was "frustrated" because of repeated electoral losses and was trying to divert attention from the AgustaWestland scam.

--IANS

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