Himachal Pradesh Congress hit back at BJP leader Arun Jaitley’s remark against Virbhadra Singh and accusing the BJP of launching a smear campaign against Congress state chief. Congress in its press communiqué alleged that senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley is adopting double standard while targeting the state Congress senior leader.
Congress media department in-charge Mukesh Agnihotri reminded Jaitley that the Jain hawala diaries were also seized during a raid of the Central Bureau of Investigation linked with militants in Kashmir.
He said the Ispat entries were no different, but the hawala diaries were more serious because those allegedly involved militants under TADA and FERA.
He said the Delhi High Court had held in the Jain hawala case that entries in the diaries maintained by the Jain brothers were not admissible in court as legal evidence.
He pointed out that an element of self-interest and partisanship of the entrant to make liable a person without whose knowledge the entry was made could not be ruled out.
He said the income tax raids were conducted in 2010 and the BJP and Jaitley were flogging a ‘dead horse’ after two years, raising an uncalled-for din to reap political dividends.
He termed it as an attempt to divert the attention of the public from the ‘massive and rampant corruption’ of BJP leaders in the last four years and-a-half.
He said Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal had not explained details of the wealth amassed by him and his family, including shares in companies and real estate, enumerated by former senior Indian Police Service officer Thind in his complaint to the Lokayukta for a detailed probe.
Agnihotri claimed that people of the state knew who amassed wealth and built palatial houses and hotels during their tenures as Chief Minister.
