Modi government crippling anti-corruption laws: Congress

The Congress on Thursday accused the Centre of systematically crippling anti-corruption legislations enacted by the previous UPA government and of hypocrisy, saying it had not fulfilled promise on fast-tracking cases involving BJP MPs.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi told the media here that the Whistle Blowers Protection Act and Prevention of Corruption Act had been weakened and the Right to Information Act eroded under the present National Democratic Alliance government.

Party spokesperson Rajeev Gowda said the party had come up with a White Paper on what he said was "systematic weakening of anti-corruption laws".

The Congress leaders accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of hypocrisy and said there was a mismatch between his actions and words.

"The government has a terrible track record of systematically crippling the anti-corruption legislations that the UPA government brought in," Singhvi said.

He said the Whistle Blowers Protection Act has been weakened by introducing a requirement that the information released must first be obtained under the Right to Information Act.

Singhvi said the Prevention of Corruption Act has been weakened by making it easier to prosecute a coerced bribe-giver but extremely difficult to prosecute a bribe-taker.

"The electoral bonds is part of an elaborate scheme to smother accountability and transparency," he said.

The Congress leader said the Prime Minister, in his maiden speech in Parliament, had said that he would fast-track criminal cases against MPs and promised to dispose of such cases in a year.

"Three years have passed. The cases against sitting MPs and MLAs remain unresolved," he said.

Singhvi said that "31 per cent of the ministers in the government face criminal cases with 18 per cent facing serious criminal charges".

Gowda said the party urges Modi to match his actions with words on the corruption issue.

The party also released a list of scams allegedly involving BJP leaders, including Union Ministers who had in their election affidavits mentioned cases pending against them.

The cases against Ministers relate to electoral violations, criminal cases including attempt to murder, and causing communal disharmony.

--IANS

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