Travel documents to Lalit Modi: BJP involved, Sushma Swaraj guilty, says Congress

New Delhi: Keeping up its attack on External Affairs Minister over granting of travel documents to former IPL chief Lalit Modi, Congress on Monday said that the entire Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was involved in 'Modigate', adding that Sushma Swaraj was 'without doubt guilty'.

The Congress also said that it was hard to believe Prime Minister Narendra Modi who 'runs the foreign ministry' didn't know about an absconder being helped.

Addressing a press conference in the national capital, party spokesperson Randeep Surjewala showed pictures of PM and former IPL chief together to the media and said, “It seems like Lalit Modi has connections with the PM and Amit Shah. Would any reasonable person believe that EAM helped the criminal without the knowledge of the PM?”

“Unprecedented that written communication establishes a quid pro quo between the criminal in question and the minister,” warning that the “government would regret backing Swaraj.”

“Doesn't this make EAM an abettor the crime and shouldn’t an FIR be filed,” the Congress leader asked.

Surjewala also posed 11 questions to the Prime Minister, including "what happens to transparency and non-corruption promise" made by him and how the government would bring back black money if it "supports" such people who are accused of money laundering to the tune of Rs 700 crore.

Rejecting Swaraj's defence that she helped Lalit Modi on "humanitarian grounds", Surjewala had yesterday alleged quid-pro-quo, saying the former IPL Commissioner had helped her husband Swaraj Kaushal in securing admission for his nephew in a UK university in 2013 and that he enjoyed proximity to BJP leaders, including its president Amit Shah.

The AICC in-charge of communications department had also wondered if the government had come out with a policy to help criminals on humanitarian ground and if it would be extended to wanted terrorist Dawood Ibrahim too if he sought such a help.

"What we have witnessed today involves blatant quid pro quo, direct help to a fugitive from law, internecine warfare between the top echelons of government and unraveling of the nexus between BJP leadership and its crony criminal friends... Swaraj should immediately step down," he had said.

He had also sought to know if the PM was aware of Swaraj's help to the former IPL chief.

Sushma had yesterday admitted that she had helped Lalit Modi procure documents to travel to Portugal last July on "humanitarian grounds".

Sushma, in a series of 14 tweets, had said she had helped Lalit Modi, who has been staying in London since 2010 following allegations of financial impropriety, after he approached her last July, saying his wife was suffering from cancer and was to undergo surgery in Portugal.

The minister, however, had denied having sought any favour for her nephew Jyotirmay Kaushal with regard to his admission in a law course at Sussex University.

"What benefit did I pass on to Lalit Modi - that he could sign consent papers for surgery of his wife suffering from cancer? He was in London. After his wife's surgery, he came back to London. What is it that I changed?" she had said in angry tweets.

Sushma is reported to have spoken to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the matter.

Backing Swaraj, BJP chief and Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh came out in support of the senior minister.

At the same time Samajwadi Party too backed Swaraj with Ram Gopal Yadav saying that 'she had done no wrong'.

(With Agency inputs)