The Lok Sabha committee constituted by the Speaker to probe the alleged cash-for-vote scam, which marred the Congress-led UPA government’s 22 July trust vote in the House, failed to trace the source of the “bribe money” or the players involved in what marked one of the murkiest episodes in the country’s parliamentary democracy.
In its report tabled in the Lok Sabha on Monday, the seven-member committee, headed by Congress MP Kishore Chandra Deo, exonerated Congress leader Ahmed Patel and gave a virtual clean chit to SP leader Amar Singh, the two leaders had allegedly offered money to three BJP MPs, Ashok Argal, Mahavir Bhagora and Faggan Singh Kulaste.
The three BJP MPs had alleged that an amount of one crore was paid to them as “token money” at the behest of Amar Singh to induce them to vote in support of the UPA government or abstain from it during its trust vote. The episode was secretly recorded by CNN-IBN in collaboration with the BJP MPs.
In its 466-page report, the committee, however, said: “There is no direct evidence against Amar Singh.” As regards Patel, it said “there is practically no case against Ahmed Patel. His alleged complicity in the episode is based entirely on presumptions and surmises.” Both Patel, political advisor to Congress President Sonia Gandhi, and Amar Singh are members of the Rajya Sabha.
The committee concluded that “as there is no case against Ahmed Patel and no clinching evidence against Amar Singh, there is no occasion for the committee or the House to make a request to Rajya Sabha requiring them to appear before the inquiry committee for evidence”, adding: “There is also no occasion for referring the matter relating to complaint against the two members to Rajya Sabha for examination, investigation and report.”
The committee report cited absence of “clinching evidence” either in the CNN-IBN sting tapes and loose ends in the submissions made by various suspected players, both politicians and their non-political associates, to express its inability to go to the root of the matter, holding that it does not have the wherewithal to do so.
The committee, however, recommended that a probe by an “appropriate investigating agency” be done into the roles of Sanjeev Saxena, said to be an aide of Amar Singh, Suhail Hindustani, a “volunteer” in the operation, and Sudheendra Kulkarni, an aide of BJP leader LK Advani.
Two members of the committee, VK Malhotra of the BJP and Mohd Salim of the CPI-M, gave notes of dissent, distancing themselves from the report’s findings and conclusions.
In its reaction to the report, the BJP said it did not get justice as the “truth did not come to the fore”. The Congress said it is for Parliament to consider the report and take a decision.
In its report tabled in the Lok Sabha on Monday, the seven-member committee, headed by Congress MP Kishore Chandra Deo, exonerated Congress leader Ahmed Patel and gave a virtual clean chit to SP leader Amar Singh, the two leaders had allegedly offered money to three BJP MPs, Ashok Argal, Mahavir Bhagora and Faggan Singh Kulaste.
The three BJP MPs had alleged that an amount of one crore was paid to them as “token money” at the behest of Amar Singh to induce them to vote in support of the UPA government or abstain from it during its trust vote. The episode was secretly recorded by CNN-IBN in collaboration with the BJP MPs.
In its 466-page report, the committee, however, said: “There is no direct evidence against Amar Singh.” As regards Patel, it said “there is practically no case against Ahmed Patel. His alleged complicity in the episode is based entirely on presumptions and surmises.” Both Patel, political advisor to Congress President Sonia Gandhi, and Amar Singh are members of the Rajya Sabha.
The committee concluded that “as there is no case against Ahmed Patel and no clinching evidence against Amar Singh, there is no occasion for the committee or the House to make a request to Rajya Sabha requiring them to appear before the inquiry committee for evidence”, adding: “There is also no occasion for referring the matter relating to complaint against the two members to Rajya Sabha for examination, investigation and report.”
The committee report cited absence of “clinching evidence” either in the CNN-IBN sting tapes and loose ends in the submissions made by various suspected players, both politicians and their non-political associates, to express its inability to go to the root of the matter, holding that it does not have the wherewithal to do so.
The committee, however, recommended that a probe by an “appropriate investigating agency” be done into the roles of Sanjeev Saxena, said to be an aide of Amar Singh, Suhail Hindustani, a “volunteer” in the operation, and Sudheendra Kulkarni, an aide of BJP leader LK Advani.
Two members of the committee, VK Malhotra of the BJP and Mohd Salim of the CPI-M, gave notes of dissent, distancing themselves from the report’s findings and conclusions.
In its reaction to the report, the BJP said it did not get justice as the “truth did not come to the fore”. The Congress said it is for Parliament to consider the report and take a decision.
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