Press Briefing
Wednesday, 19th October 2011
Shri Abhishek
Singhvi addressed the media today.
Shri Abhishek Singhvi said when the whole
Karnataka government is standing on its toes and
it is the incumbent government whose immediate
prior Chief Minister is supposed to go to jail,
can the BJP expect the country to believe the
crocodile tears it is shedding on corruption? A
person in respect of whom the BJP, Shri Advani
and the whole party strained every sinew till a
few weeks ago to prevent him from even resigning
to stop his arrest. Today a distinction without
difference is made and a difference without a
distinction is made that we believe in the rule
of law. The law should go on but we support him
and the support means that the entire cabinet
stands in one line to receive him in the jail.
He is able to scold the Prisons Minister in case
the facilities are not up to the mark. He
embarks on a ‘jail yatra’ by going from one
hospital to another and it is believed that the
police in that state will conduct their
investigation, prosecution, proceedings and so
will the jail authorities without fear or favour
as they would for a common man. Certainly only
people with good fortune can have such ‘5-Star
jail-yatras’ or ‘5-star rath-yatras’. May a lot
of us whether VIPs or ordinary ‘aam-aadmi’, we
can only dream of such special preferential
treatment in jail or very few would refuse such
preferential treatment if this is the definition
of jail in Karnataka as far as Yeddyurappa is
concerned. This is a very-very poignant comment
on the hypocrisy of the BJP. It is equally
poignant and important comment on those others
apart from BJP who are ordinary people, other
political parties or other organization NGOs who
selectively choose to keep silent on such
issues. I repeat selectively choose to keep
silent on such issues while constantly
criticizing the ruling parties like the Congress
regarding corruption whereas the fact of the
matter is that on ‘thos-kadam’ (concrete steps),
nobody has done more than the Congress. It is
and should be an eye opening comment about the
BJP’s hypocritical approach to corruption. First
spend 2-1/2 years to even allow the resignation
of a person who ultimately goes screaming,
shouting, kicking and hesitating, at a date and
time of his choice determined by him and
thereafter enact the farce of avoidance of
arrest, then the bigger drama of surrender and
then the further biggest drama of surrender
meaning only trips from one jail to another
hospital to a third hospital, back to jail and
back out. This is nothing but trying to fool the
people of this nation and it deserves to be
either condemned or laughed at or both.
On the question of reaction of the Congress
party on the remarks of Shri Pawar raising
questions on the credibility of the Congress
party over the negative results in
bye-elections, Shri Singhvi said we have always
made it clear not only now but earlier also that
every constituent of a coalition has the
democratic right to have his or her own views
and to express them and it has never meant and
does not mean that those views are shared or
endorsed by every other constituent of that
coalition namely the UPA. This applies
generally. It is not Mr. Pawar specific but it
has always been the stand of the Congress party.
I do not agree with your summary of what he has
said. Shri Singhvi further said let us be clear
that he is expressing an opinion which certainly
in a democratic country everybody has a right.
Let us be equally clear that the expression of
an opinion by a constituent of a coalition is
not attributable directly or indirectly, not
endorsed automatically by any other constituent
of that coalition. This has been the consistent
stand from the inception and thirdly if you have
any clarification, interpretation or comment,
you have to ask him.
To another question on the reaction of the
Congress party on the statement of Shri Pranab
Mukherjee on the remit of CAG, Shri Singhvi said
that you are absolutely right but you are
misinterpreting what he has said. Shri Pranab
Mukherjee is not commenting on the specific
cases in respect of which we have said that the
CAG may well have exceeded its remit e.g. Shri
Mukherejee was certainly not commenting on that
and you are misrepresenting if you suggest so.
The comment which I made myself from this podium
and with which the Congress party stands, is
that e.g. in a memorial lecture direct
observations were made about the functioning of
the government. I do not think there is anybody,
in fact, I would challenge any other political
party, to support the text and please read that
text. Certainly the CAG has full right to
investigate matters regarding accounts, figures
and embezzlements but certainly the Congress
party is equally entitled in a democracy to make
an observation on specifics, I am not speaking
generally. The observations in the so-called
lecture, of course, there is no problem if he is
prefacing it by saying they are my personal
views not as CAG but as an office holder of CAG,
those are clearly beyond the Article 149 remit
of that office and that is all and certainly
Finance Minister was not suggesting otherwise
when he made that comment.
On another question on the statement made by
Shri Advani that the Congress party is
responsible for creating the whole mess with
regard to the creation of Telengana, Shri
Singhvi said the less said about the BJP and the
less said about Mr. Advani, the better. Can the
media ask him this question even now
retrospectively, although you never asked him
from 1998 to 2004. The question is to Mr. Advani
and the BJP – why did you not implement and
create that about which you are shedding so many
crocodile tears for political reasons? So unless
he answers that question, he does not have any
right to ask us. He is only trying to create
further confusion and instability on an issue
where political statesmanship, patience and
political co-operation is required, instead of
divisiveness and political expediency which is
what he is exhibiting?
To another question as to what is wrong if the
CAG probes the quantum of benefits given to the
Reliance during the last 25 years, Shri Singhvi
said if it is indicative towards the CAG, the
CAG has raised certain queries. This is neither
the interim nor the final report. We do not
comment on speculations. It is not advisable to
comment on the questionnaire exchanged between
the CAG and the Ministry concerned.
On the question of reaction of the Congress
party over the continuing violent attacks on
members of Team Anna and whether Team Anna is
heading towards disintegration consequent upon
its two members leaving the team, Shri Singhvi
said as far as violent attacks are concerned, we
have already condemned the same in strong words.
Shri Singhvi further said it is not for me to
speculate and to use the adjectives which you
have the privilege to use. It is certainly a
question which you have raised, you have to ask
and get the answers from your community and
elsewhere. I have nothing to say.
(Tom Vadakkan)
Secretary, AICC
