Author: TNN
Publication: The Times of India
Date: January 5, 2008
The order of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal
(ITAT) that could legitimise UP chief minister Mayawati's valuable properties
including bungalows in Delhi and crores in lockers has drawn flak from diverse
quarters, with many expressing apprehension that it could dent the very basis
of the Anti-Corruption Act.
As reported by TOI, the ITAT has accepted
at face value the BSP chief 's claim that party supporters had gifted the
riches to her out of "love and affection" because they were moved
by the "missionary manner" in which she was working for the downtrodden.
While finance minister P Chidambaram refused
to comment on the controversial respite granted to Mayawati, his party Congress
minced no words in trashing the ITAT's ruling as "farce". "We
are confronted with the most unusual order of the tribunal," spokesperson
Abhishek Singhvi said, when reporters asked about his party's position.
