Government stance on vigilance chief a lie: BJP
By IANSThursday, January 27, 2011
NEW DELHI - The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Thursday termed as a “patent lie” the government telling the apex court that the panel that selected P.J. Thomas as the Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC) was not informed about a pending charge sheet against him. The party said it will file an affidavit in the apex court to put the record straight.
“Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj would file an affidavit in the Supreme Court to put the record straight. It has exposed the patent lie of the government conveyed to the court,” BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said here.
He said that Swaraj, who was a member of the three-member committee for selection of the CVC, had conveyed that a charge sheet was pending against Thomas in the palm oil import case.
Prasad said she had very clearly stated that the government could select from among the two other names before the selection panel and suggested that the process of appointment may be deferred by a day. “But the government insisted on appointing him (Thomas),” Prasad said.
Prasad said that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should tell the nation when he learnt that criminal prosecution was pending against Thomas in the palm oil import case.
He said the government never said it was not aware of the prosecution pending in the palm oil import case.
Attacking the prime minister, Prasad said while former communications minister was an alibi in the 2G spectrum scam and Suresh Kalmadi similarly in the Commonwealth Games scam, “the trail in the case of appointment of the CVC leads to the door of the PM”.
“There is no alibi… There is a most scandalous empire under you. The manner in which the government is functioning is utterly callous and deliberately indifferent,” he said.
At the meeting of the committee for selection of the CVC Sep 3 last year, Swaraj had recorded her disagreement over the selection of Thomas. The committee, which also comprises the prime minister and Home Minister P. Chidambaram, had recommended selection of Thomas by majority.
The Supreme Court was told Thursday that the high-powered committee for selection of the CVC was not informed about a pending charge sheet against Thomas and the sanction granted by the Kerala government to prosecute him in the palm oil import case.
