Zee Media Bureau
New Delhi: Attacking Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader LK Advani on Sunday alleged that he cannot shirk the responsibility of scams occurring under him during the UPA rule on anyone else.
“Prime responsibility in the coal scam is that of the Prime Minister,” the BJP doyen said.
Advani said that there has not been a worse period in the entire history of the country since Independence than the last ten years - since UPA came to power.
“In history of our country from point of view of integrity and honest governance, there hasn’t been a worst period than last 10 years (under UPA I and II),”Advani said.
Alleging that PM cannot be counted out among those responsible for scams like Commonwealth Games scandal to Coalgate - that have taken place in UPA dispensation, he avered, "Starting from the Commonwealth Games scam there have been several scams one after the other...From CWG to Coalgate. Initially they said our allies are involved, not us. Now even the Prime Minister cannot be counted out."
Targeting UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Advani said, “Sarkar do vyakti chala rahe hai. Sarkar Congress adhyaksha aur PM ki hai - unke sehmati ke bina PM koi nirnaya nai le sakte. (Two people are running the government – Congress president and the Prime Minister. And PM doesn’t take a step without her consent).” Hence she too was also equally culpable in the scams, he felt.
"The government is not made by one individual but comprises of several people," Advani said.
Asked if he was holding the Prime Minister directly responsible for Coalgate, he said, "I hold this government responsible for it."
Advani insisted that the government cannot put all the blame for scams on its allies.
"Even during the Vajpayee government there were allies. But whenever there was a charge against any leader- even belonging to an ally party- he was asked to leave. There was, of course, no question of any charge being levelled against Atal Bihari Vajpayee or any BJP minister," he said.
Advani rued the fact that though the country has an economist PM, the extent to which the economy has been mismanaged was not seen before. He further said there is policy paralysis in the UPA regime.
Raking up the issue of black money stashed abroad, Advani said though the UPA government brought out a White Paper on it under pressure from the Opposition, it has not been able to bring back any money kept illegally in foreign shores.
Advani also expressed his unhappiness at the arrest of whistleblower MPs from the BJP who had exposed alleged attempts to bribe them during the Trust Vote on July 22, 2008 in Parliament. They were recently exonerated.
With PTI inputs
