BJP in agreement with most points of Jan Lokpal

This is details of 26th August:

NEW DELHI: On a day Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi expressed his differences with Anna Hazare's idea of Lokpal, BJP and Left parties appeared to be converging on salient points, including bringing the Prime Minister's Office under its ambit with safeguards.

Leaders of Opposition Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley on Friday moved resolutions for debate and vote in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha on their recommendations on the bill. "Discussions with civil society groups and non-UPA political parties are converging towards the same position," Jaitley told reporters. Anna Hazare's team had meetings with senior BJP leaders on Thursday night and the Left parties on Friday morning.

The BJP exuded confidence that its resolution on setting up an independent Lokpal, if passed in the House, would end the deadlock over the bill. According to it, the law should have the widest coverage, including the Prime Minister, with the exception of his national security and public order functions. The resolution said it should create an appointment mechanism for appointing Lokpals independent of government domination and also provide for an independent and autonomous CBI.

BJYM to “Sansad Gherao” on August 9, Asks corrupt UPA government to Quit

New Delhi, June 22: BJYM National President & M.P. Shri Anurag Thakur on Wednesday announced that lakhs of young volunteers of the youth wing of the Bhartiya Janata Party will march to the Parliament on August 9 to voice their protest against rising corruption and collapse of institutional democracy in the country. In a protest symbolically coinciding with the commencement of the Quit India Movement by Mahatma Gandhi against the British Empire on August 9, the BJYM has decided to launch a nation-wide campaign to expose the congress led UPA government.

“We are astonished at the inaction and insensitivity of the congress-led UPA government over the plethora of corruption cases that have surfaced in recent past,” said Shri Thakur. He further added that for the first time in the history of modern India, the nation is witnessing such unprecedented levels of corruption. The Congress-led UPA government has no moral right to remain in government at the Centre.

“The people of the country, and especially the youth are in a state of shock and surprise at the colossal loss of institutional democracy in the country. They desperately want an explanation for the kind of corruption that has surfaced in this regime. We demand the government to own moral responsibility for this collapse,” said Shri Thakur at a press conference at the BJP headquarters in Delhi.

Under the UPA government many scams and corruption cases have surfaced including but not limited to the CWG scam, 2G Scam, Adarsh Housing Society scam and S Band deal scam. In spite of the hue and cry created by the media and civil society, the Prime Minister and UPA chairperson have maintained a silence and this has led the country to an emergency like situation.

The BJYM has created awareness all over the country in regards to the corruption and black money scams of the congress led UPA government by undertaking youth marches and marathons against corruption. These kind of programs were organised all over the country, mobilising lakhs of youth against corruption.

The country and especially its youth are aghast at this eerie silence of this unresponsive government and strongly demand answers to the queries that arise in people’s minds. “The government has lost its moral credibility to remain in power and we want the government to quit, much like the ineffectual British, who ruined the social and political fabric of the nation,” Shri Thakur said.

BJYM has given a call of “Chalo Delhi” to protest against such ineffective governance. Youths from all parts of the country will converge on the national Capital on August 9 to exhibit their anger and anguish at the corrupt governance in the country.

“We take a vow to expose the UPA government and shall fight tooth and nail to ensure this corrupt government is shown the door,” slammed the BJYM President.

Chidambaram as much involved in 2G scam as Raja: BJP

New Delhi, July 9 : Stepping up its demand for the removal of P Chidambaram from the Union Cabinet, BJP today said as Finance Minister he was as much involved in the 2G spectrum scam as then Telecom Minister A Raja and insisted that he should also be incarcerated for his complicity.

BJP spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Tarun Vijay maintained that it has now been "proved beyond doubt" that Chidambaram had connived with Raja in the 2G scam and the cover-up exercise that followed was done after taking the former into confidence. "Chidambaram is as much responsible and culpable for this scam as Raja. His place is not where he is today (in the union cabinet) but where Raja is today," Vijay told reporters. The opposition demanded that not only should Chidambaram, who is now Home Minister in UPA-II, be sacked but also sent to jail like Raja and DMK MP Kanimozhi.

He claimed to have a copy of the letter written by Raja to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on November 7, 2008 in which the former has reportedly stated that he was acting on the advice of Chidambaram. "Raja acted on Chidambaram's advice like a nursery-class student. Later as an obedient student, he informed the Prime Minister about the whole thing," Vijay said. He alleged that these ministers have "looted the wealth" of the country when they were given the mandate to protect its interest. .

"These ministers are acting like a sort of gang or mafia. Etisalat DB, which has connections with the Dawood Ibrahim gang, has been fined Rs 7,000 crore for FEMA violations. Unlike the colonial rulers who took the wealth outside India, these people are born Indians but have become a party in the loot of India," Vijay said. The BJP maintained that this fine under FEMA is a clear indictment of Chidambaram as Finance Minister and he should face the law.

One more scam? BJP says PM sat over Rs 85,000 crore coal loot

Manmohan held coal portfolio when dummy companies made a killing

Just a day after prime minister Manmohan Singh celebrated two years of the UPA II rule, the Bharatiya Janata Party has accused him of direct culpability in the "loot" in a Rs 85,000 crore coal 'scam', as he held the portfolio between 2006 and 2009 after Shibu Soren had resigned.

The modus operandi of this latest scam is no different from that of the 2G scam as "rules were bent, definitions changed, modalities distorted to benefit the allottees, and many sold the coal blocks to other companies at hefty premium," Vidarbha MP Hansraj Ahir and party spokesman Prakash Javadekar said at a press conference here.

They alleged that illegal gratification was obtained in this case by bringing a bill in parliament in 2006 and then keeping it hanging for five years to allow the massive loot. They demanded an immediate
probe monitored by the Supreme Court and a special audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG).

The scam started with the introduction of the Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill in parliament in 2006 for the auction of mines that triggered a rush and the government went on surreptitiously gifting coal blocks free of cost to 143 private companies without waiting for passage of the bill. The bill was passed only in 2010 while the loot went on unchecked.

Ahir and Javadekar said Manmohan Singh had an excuse for the 2G scam that it was the handiwork of former telecom minister A Raja and he didn't know about it, but he cannot have any such alibi as he headed the coal ministry and sat over the coal blocks which were being frittered away for three years to 51 companies in 2006, 19 in 2007, 41 in 2008 and 32 in 2009.

Which are these companies that minted the money? The existing policy allowed allotment of the coal blocks to the actual user industries, namely steel, cement and power plants, while those gifted the blocks had neither any industry nor even any licence to start such an industry to get the blocks. They were all dummy companies.

"The culpability of the prime minister is clearly established as he had presided over this loot of precious natural resources, allowing
fake and bogus companies that either sold the licences or made money by selling coal that they were supposed to utilise in own industries,"
Ahir said.

He said the going rate as per the business circles is Rs 50 per tonne and thus more than Rs 85,000 crores changed hands during the four-year coal scam.
Source: www.governancenow.com, 23th May 2011

PM weak, can't speak up against corruption: Advani

Kolkata, Feb 15 (IANS) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L.K. Advani Tuesday once again dubbed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as a 'weak prime minister' and criticised him for his inability to stand up against corruption charges against the Congress-led central government.

'When I had said during the 2009 Lok Sabha election campaign that I have seen all the prime ministers since Jawaharlal Nehru but I feel pity for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh because I have never seen such a weak prime minister, many people said that I should not say this because many people feel bad about it,' said Advani while addressing a mammoth rally in Kolkata.

Earlier during 2009 Lok Sabha elections campaign, Advani as also some other BJP leaders had targeted Manmohan Singh and repeatedly called him the weakest prime minister India has had.

But the strategy backfired as the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) faced lost to the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) spearheaded by the Congress, which regained power with a handsome majority.

'At that time (2009) I had said that being a good person is fine. But if a good person is weak and he becomes prime minister then he can never stand up against corruption charges and scams. In last few months, my words have been proved true. The Supreme Court has several times scolded the government,' said Advani.

(Sify News)