Press Briefing Monday, 19th April 2010

Shri Abhishek Singhvi addressed the media today.


Shri Abhishek Singhvi said that by a considered and reasoned process the Hon’ble Union Minister of State for External Affairs has resigned. I want to draw your attention to certain important facets of this process. When the issue broke a few days ago, within a few hours, the Hon’ble Prime Minister, far away from India occupied with heavy matters of State, explicitly said that he would look into the facts upon his return and then have a considered response. Thereafter the Hon’ble Congress President looked into the matter. Thereafter two senior members of the Core Group looked into the matter. The point, I am making, is not the merits at all, the point I am making is, there was no attempt ever to avoid the issue to brush it under the carpet, to postpone it indefinitely. Secondly, despite a long grueling trip from half way across the globe, the Prime Minister returns on Saturday and within a day, you have a series of meetings; confabulations where all aspects and facets are considered in a sober manner within a day of the Prime Minister’s return. There is no major reaction. There is a matured decision making process which addresses the issue upfront. The allegation of the BJP that the Congress Party’s reaction was slow or tardy or avoiding the issue is, to put it mildly, laughable. It is completely untrue. Fourthly, I would request you to kindly compare the totality of the picture and the Congress Party’s process, result, response, its mature decision making process, its responsible response compare it with that of other parties.

Shri Singhvi said that the Congress Party has always stood for probity, for cleanliness, for responsive and responsible governance. In that it has transcended technical legality and not taken refuge in the adjudicatory judicial process. Not to say that is not important but it has not been made into an excuse for reaction. This, I submit, is in stark contrast to events of recent political history what to talk of longer. Mr. George Fernandes did not even offer to resign, forget the result, forget the action taken, and the BJP took refuge in slogans, in denials, in Commissions of Enquiry and in technical legalese. This is before you, remember, it was before you in a literal sense, it was on candid camera. The facts were much less disputable, the charges even more serious and a different perspective were hardly possible there and yet what happened, you know. But similarly, turning to more recent events, the principal opposition, which is now in the preaching mode, hoarsely preaching but it is like an ostrich chosing to overlook its own conduct in its own backyard in Karnataka. A Cabinet Minister of the BJP which preaches to you everyday had been creating headlines for last several weeks for wrong reasons. The headlines relate to serious continuing consistent corrupt practices in what is known as the ‘Bellary issue’. The facts are much grosser there. The news reports demonstrate day light robbery going on. They are based on concrete investigative journalism, facts and figures after serious investigation. What has been the response, I ask you. The response of Mr. Gadkari or Mr. Advani, the leader of the opposition of the BJP in the two Houses respectively. What has been the response - golden eloquent, silence? When they choose to speak, which is rarely, they speak of Commissions, Committees of Enquiry, judicial proceedings. I am asking you how would they and you have reacted if the Congress Party had referred this matter to the same set of Committees, Commissions and judicial enquiries. This is a classic case of the politics of hypocrisy. It is a classic case of politics of preaching what you deliberately never practice. It is the politics of the fork tongue. It is the politics of double standards and those who have indulged in this consistently not only now but over the political history do have the real case to answer before the people of India.

To a question whether action of Shri Shashi Tharoor has been based on the facts and whether the Congress Party and the Government feels there is prima-facie a case against him, Shri Singhvi said that you have seen the culmination of a very matured reasoned decision making process which is sober and balanced and that is the Congress Party’s style and tradition. It is based on a broad prima-facie view of the fact. It is based on looking into the larger perspective of the facts holistically but certainly it is not intended or meant to indicate that this is the end of any judicial process. There is no final judicial order and therefore, to use words like ‘convicted’ or ‘acquitted’, ‘accused’ or ‘innocent’ is not quite right. We could also have confused and confounded the issue as our political opposition has done several times in the past by taking refuge in such technicalities. That we have not done so, is a reflection of consistency with which the Congress Party has viewed larger moral principles and with which the Congress Party has always taken a larger view of the matter and in this, I would say that it is very good also of the Hon’ble Minister to take that larger view. It does not mean that anybody is accepting judicial guilt or innocence but it certainly means adherence to a politics which is based on higher and moral principles. It is also in stark contrast to the politics of hypocrisy and the politics of preaching without practice which our friends specializes as far as the opposition is concerned.
 

Tom Vadakkan
Secretary, AICC