The Hindu : National : "His car was not damaged on hospital premises"

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Apr 25, 2005

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National

"His car was not damaged on hospital premises"

Special Correspondent

Lalu Prasad has misled Prime Minister, says Jaitley

NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) says it will raise in Parliament what it calls the Railway Minister, Lalu Prasad's false charges of being attacked by a mob in a Gujarat hospital on Thursday last when he had gone to meet those injured in a railway accident.

Armed with a compact disc that "proved'' that Mr. Prasad's car was not damaged on the hospital premises, Arun Jaitley, BJP leader demanded his resignation for "misleading'' even the Prime Minister.

Addressing a news conference on Sunday and flanked by the Gujarat Home Minister, Amit Shah, Mr. Jaitley said the CD "showed'' that Mr. Lalu Prasad had adequate police protection at the hospital and that the windscreen of his car was intact. Mr. Prasad had complained that a mob set upon him at the hospital and that though he escaped a "murderous assault,'' his car's rear windscreen was smashed.

"Only water pouches thrown at him"

"Clearly the dirty tricks department of the Railway Minister was at work. Five TV cameras captured him leaving the hospital and except for a wet kurta because of water pouches thrown on him, there were no signs of him being assaulted. There was not a single piece of broken glass on the hospital premises. He even misled the Prime Minister and persuaded him to seek a report from the Governor. The least that the PM should do is dismiss him from the Council of Ministers,'' said Mr. Jaitley.

"Our party will raise this instance of Mr. Prasad's falsehood in Parliament. I am not ruling out anything,'' he said.

The CD shown to the media was a compilation of two brief footages of Mr. Prasad's visit to Gujarat.

The first showed the Minister entering the hospital surrounded by a crowd, which the audio suggested, raised slogans in his favour and against the Gujarat Government. Mr. Jaitley agreed that "in reaction'' some people shouted slogans against Mr. Prasad and threw water pouches at him. The second footage showed Mr. Prasad's motorcade, surrounded by policemen, leaving the "hospital'' and the "windscreen was intact'', said the BJP leader. "Why did he complain of being attacked only at the airport? He could have made the point to the media right outside the hospital. We will present this `evidence' to the probe panel set up by the Gujarat Government,'' he said.

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