Kottarakkara (Ker): BJP leader L K Advani on Sunday alleged the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre
had sullied the country`s image and democracy by indulging in
corruption and protecting the corrupt.
Addressing a public meeting here on the 18th day of his
Jana Chetna Yatra, he said besides condemning corruption,
his yatra had the objective of forcing the government to bring
back black money stashed away in Swiss banks.
Advani said he conceived the yatra after his colleagues
exposed the cash-for-vote scandal in Parliament. "Instead of
congratulating them and protecting them for exposing such a
huge scandal, the government put them in jail," he said.
"Through bribing MPs for votes to cook up majority in
Parliament, the UPA sullied the image of the country and
democracy," Advani alleged.
Stating that BJP had started its campaign against
corruption in the Winter Session of Parliament last year, he
said it forced the government to order a Joint Parliamentary
Committee probe into the 2G spectrum scam in 2011.
"Congress is leaving its leaders responsible for the
scandal by making allies scapegoats. We have no sympathies
with the allies and every corrupt person should be punished.
"But why make them scapegoats for which you too are
responsible?" he said.
On the blackmoney issue, Advani said, "If the Rs 25 lakh
crore stashed away to Swiss banks is brought back, all the six
lakh villages in the country can be developed."
"If the British had looted Rs one lakh crore in 200 years
of their rule, Rs 25 lakh crore had been taken away by the
corrupt forces in the country in 60 years," the BJP leader
said.
Advani said the Swiss Government had passed in 2011 the
Restitution of Illegal Assets Act at the insistence of western
countries including the US, Germany and France, who got a
resolution to the effect passed in the UN Security Council.
"Why is the Indian government shying away from taking
action and bring back the black money?" he said.
Advani said he undertook his first yatra in 1997,
coinciding with 50 years of independence to pay tributes to
all patriots and make people aware that due to lack of good
governance the country had not progressed.
He said his Jana Chetna Yatra raised three slogans:
`Bhrashtachar Mitayenge` (we will remove corruption), `Kaala
dhan vaapas layenge` (we will bring back black money) and
`Bharat Desh Naya Banayenge` (we will create a new India).
He also expressed gratitude to the people for their
"tremendous response" to the yatra. "This surprise and
happiness has been there all through my yatra."
PTI
