Allegations involving two ministers of the United Progressive Alliance government, of corruption and dealing in arms, today saw almost continuous uproar in both Houses of Parliament.
While the AIADMK continued to raise Communications Minister A Raja's involvement in the 2G auction 'scam' that has reportedly cost the state exchequer almost Rs 1 lakh crore, the Opposition today got new ammunition as Minister of State for Rural Development Shishir Adhikary's name surfaced for buying arms from Bangladesh to attack CPI(M) activists in West Bengal.
Raja is a member of the DMK. Adhikary is a Trinamool Congress MP and a confidant of Railway Minister and party chief Mamata Banerjee.
Amidst the din in Lok Sabha, the government however, passed three Bills before the House got adjourned for the day. These are: Employees' State Insurance (Amendment) Bill, Payment of Gratuity Bill and Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Bill.
The Rajya Sabha was adjourned twice on Monday and the Lok Sabha thrice, as opposition members demanded Telecom Minister A Raja's dismissal on the alleged irregularities in the allocation of 2G spectrum. Showing copies of media reports that suggest Raja's close aides had siphoned off crores of rupee in Swiss banks, the AIADMK and the BJP were on their feet as soon as the house met for the day.
Coupled with this issue, the Left parties, the BJP, Shiv Sena, SP, JD (U) and AGP took up another news report suggesting Adhikary bought arms from a Bangladeshi dealer and handed there over to his followers to use against the CPI (M). The opposition parties wanted the prime minister to clarify on both issues.
Similar scenes prevailed in the Lok Sabha as well, where a united opposition demanded the government's response citing the arms deal as an issue involving national security.
In zero hour at the Rajya Sabha, CPI (M)'s Moinul Hassan said Adhikary gave Rs 1.2 lakh to a Bangladeshi arms dealer through his partymen. "The minister and his colleagues are trying to destabilise the law and order situation in West Bengal," he said, quoting a newspaper report.
Leader of Opposition Arun Jaitley joined the issue and said unless the government clarified, the "needle of suspicion" would point at the entire cabinet.
While CPI-M leader in Rajya Sabha Sitaram Yechury alleged his partymen were being killed in West Bengal, Hassan said the arms procured by Trinamool minister were used by Maoists and also in a bank robbery. Raking up the issue of phone tapping, Hasan demanded the conversation between the minister and the arms dealers be tapped.
M Venkaiah Naidu (BJP) said the government could say it will examine the issue and come back to the House tomorrow. However, the government did not oblige him.
According to Trinamool Congress sources, Home Minister P Chidambaram enquired about the matter with Trinamool chief whip in Lok Sabha Sudip Bandopadhyay.
Adhikary, in a statement from Kolkata, denied all charges. "I am shocked to see the news. I categorically deny any such charge leveled against me. This is a ploy of the political opponents to defame me and my party ahead of the municipal elections in Bengal," Adhikary said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi today strongly backed Raja and said Opposition parties were levelling "malicious charges" just because he was a Dalit. “Raja is a Dalit. That is why dominant forces are levelling malicious charges against him,” he said when asked for his comments on the Opposition demands for his resignation in the wake of allegations of scam in 2G spectrum allocation.
However, Congress sources said Raja was unlikely to be removed.
