Author: Kumar Uttam
Publication: The Pioneer
Date: August 5, 2008
War over cash-for-vote scandal
The cash-for-vote controversy continues to
create ripples in the political circles with a new UPA CD alleging that the
BJP was behind the bribing of MPs and the main Opposition party releasing
fresh evidence against Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh.
A day after the BJP came out with "documentary
evidence" to prove the SP's involvement in the cash-for-vote scandal,
the UPA on Monday fielded two Central Ministers to assist its "new-found
friends" in defending themselves.
Union Ministers and arch rivals Lalu Prasad
and Ram Vilas Paswan shared dais with SP leaders Mulayam Singh Yadav and Amar
Singh and released the UPA's CD, which looks like a remake of the CD released
on Friday by Uma Bharati.
The BJP described this UPA quartet as a "Cabinet
Committee on Forgery and Fabrication" and its senior leader Arun Jaitley
asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to what extent he would allow his Ministers
to go to lend their shoulders in creating fake evidence.
Meanwhile, the BJP also released another "evidence"
to prove the close relationship between Sanjeev Saxena, who is accused of
delivering the bribe money to three BJP MPs, and Amar Singh.
Jaitley distributed to journalists a copy
of the admission form of Saxena's son, who sought entry in the city-based
Dyal Singh College under sports quota in June this year. Saxena himself filled
the form and mentioned Amar Singh's 27 Lodhi Estate residence as his official
address.
The form also mentions Saxena's cellphone
number (9811721499), which is registered in the name of M/s HFCL (a corporate
house close to Amar Singh) and was allegedly used in making the BJP MPs speak
to the SP leader before delivering the "first installment of the bribe"
on July 22 morning. The BJP claims that Singh's Lodhi Estate residence has
been mentioned in many other forms (for different purposes, like bank loans)
that Saxena filled in the last few years.
Singh has denied that Saxena worked for him,
saying "he used to come to defector SP MP Sahid Siddiqui's Flat (8, South
Avenue) where he (Siddiqui) and I worked together". But Jaitley insisted
that Saxena was closely associated with Singh and to drive home the point,
he posed five questions for the SP leader (see box).
"The fact that the evidence we produced
on Sunday to prove Amar Singh's involvement in the scandal has not been dismissed
itself proves it could not be dismissed. A lot more evidence would come to
the fore as the ongoing probe in this matter advances," Jaitley told
newspersons.
Taking on Amar Singh, he said he would not
have come out with more evidence about the SP leader's involvement in the
cash-for-vote scandal had the UPA Ministers and Singh refrained from concocting
"fake evidence" to put the BJP in the dock. The BJP claimed that
the CD that Amar Singh and other UPA leaders released on Monday was the same
which Uma Bharati released on Friday and immediately turned out to be a fake.
"Uma's fake CD has now become a documentary for Amar Singh. I never met
Saxena," Jaitley commented on the UPA leader's claim that Saxena was
closely associated with the BJP leader.
Kulaste, whom the UPA's CD quoted as saying
that he never met Amar Singh, told reporters that the voice in the CD might
be his own but different statements of his were added and put in one place
to present a wrong picture. "I met Amar Singh on July 22 morning along
with my colleague Ashok Argal," Kulaste reiterated.
The BJP said that with new evidence surfacing,
it was keeping options open to approach the police. The attempt to create
fake evidence was itself a criminal case, Jaitley said.
Any answers, Mr Amar Singh?
· 1. Didn't Sanjeev Saxena SMS journalists
for Amar Singh's Press conference on July 20?
· 2. Didn't Saxena called Amar Singh's number to make three BJP MPs
speak to him on July 22?
· 3. Didn't Saxena use a car registered
in the name of a firm belonging to Singh's wife for handing over the bribe
money to BJP MP Ashok Argal?
· 4. Didn't Saxena flee along with
his family after the scandal became public on July 22?
· 5. Didn't he appear to playactin
a fake CD made by Singh onJuly 25?
