CBI raid at Stalin`s residence blatant misuse of power: Opposition

New Delhi: BJP on Thursday said CBI searches at DMK leader MK Stalin`s residence is an example of the "blatant" misuse of power by the UPA government for its survival and proves that it uses the probe agency to muffle allies who are walking out of the ruling coalition.

"The CBI raids on Stalin in the imported cars case vindicates BJP`s charges that Congress has been blatantly misusing CBI to survive in government. Today CBI is indeed the Congress Bureau of Investigation," party spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy said. He alleged that while there are "endless charges" of corruption against Congress, it is attempting to "muffle" voices of its alliance partners who plan to abandon it. "This raid on Stalin, heir apparent to the DMK, is a message to BSP and SP that if they desert the UPA government they are going to meet the same fate," Rudy said. SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and BSP supremo Mayawati are facing cases of disproportionate assets which are investigated by CBI. Meanwhile, Communist Party of India (CPI) leader D Raja questioned the timing of the CBI raid and sought an explanation from the Congress-led UPA government. Raja said the timing of CBI raid or investigation raises several serious questions. "It can be one of the classic cases of misuse of CBI for political purposes or it can be one of the classic cases of political vendetta. Of course, it is possible that the CBI must be having a credible evidence for such an investigation or for such a raid, but the timing. Why CBI did not act earlier? The CBI could have acted sometime afterwards. Why CBI has chosen this time?" he asked. Raja said the timing of CBI investigation or raid needs to be explained by the government. "That is why the opposition parties are always apprehensive of the misuse of CBI for political purposes. Now, it justifies what the opposition parties are saying. And this is really a serious issue since the DMK was part of the government. There was no raid so far, suddenly the raids and investigations of the CBI have begun. So, the timing is very important," he added. Raja further alleged that this move of the government could also be seen as a message to Mulayam Singh Yadav`s Samajwadi Party (SP) or Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). "I also can add that does the government think such a CBI raid or CBI investigation can send a message to SP, BSP, such parties who are trying to bail out the government," he said. PTI/ANI