New Delhi: Hitting out at the BJP-Ajit Pawar government in Maharashtra, the Congress alleged Monday that the only decision it has taken in ‘public interest’ was to close corruption cases and demanded Prime Minister Narendra Modi to come clean on the issue.
The opposition party’s attack came after the Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) said Monday it had closed the probe into the alleged irregularities in nine irrigation projects in the state, adding that none of those was linked to present Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra took a dig at the Prime Minister over the issue. She said he gave an impressive speech on corruption in Jharkhand and it is being implemented in Maharashtra at the same time. “Now his ‘One Nation, One Slogan’ is – ‘Come with us and all sins will be washed away’,” Priyanka said in a tweet in Hindi.
‘Contract killing’ of democracy in Maharashtra has now also become ‘contract killing’ of honesty and accountability, Congress’ chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said.
“The promise was to give a clean government but now corruption cases are being used as a bargaining tool to carry on with the illegitimate Devendra Fadnavis-Ajit Pawar government,” said Surjewala
“The BJP promised prior to the elections that Ajit Pawar will be sent to Arther Road Jail in the irrigation scam, but now they have made him deputy chief minister. The only public interest decision taken in the last 48 hours is to close down the irrigation scam and the corruption cases by the Anti-Corruption Bureau. Prime Minister Narendra Modi needs to answer that is this the ‘Na Khaoonga na khaane doonga claim’. The BJP has become Bhrashtachar Jagao Party,” Surjewala added.
Senior Congress leader Abhishek Singhvi said the closing of the corruption cases is the ‘most brazen, most shameful act’ of conspiracy, corrupt practice, quid-pro-quo unheard of even according to the levels to which certain parties have stooped.
“It is reprehensible, we condemn it, it makes good all the points we have made, it shows that desperation by hook or by crook and more by crook and less by hook of the ruling party in somehow by corrupt and illegal means to form a government,” Singhvi told reporters.
PTI