The Hindu : Front Page : Unfortunate end to Bofors case: Jaitley

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Thursday, Jun 02, 2005

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Unfortunate end to Bofors case: Jaitley

Special Correspondent

"Manmohan Government did not challenge earlier judgment"

NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday said the "unfortunate end" to the Bofors corruption case came about as a result of "collusion between an investigative agency pressured by the political executive and the powerful accused."

General secretary Arun Jaitley hinted here that the BJP could decide even at this stage on appealing against Tuesday's Delhi High Court verdict quashing all charges against the Hindujas. He said the Manmohan Singh Government had "decided not to challenge" a "patently erroneous judgment" of the court delivered on February 4, 2004 quashing the charges of criminal conspiracy leading to a wrongful loss to the Government. Tuesday's verdict was the "inevitable consequence."

Asked why the Vajpayee Government, which was in office for more than three months after the February 2004 judgment came, did not challenge it, he said time was not enough then but now the BJP "may" challenge Tuesday's verdict. Mr. Jaitley's contention was that the Central Bureau of Investigation worked "independently" on this high-profile case when the National Democratic Alliance was in power, but it was "pressured" by the United Progressive Alliance Government and also by the Narasimha Rao Government between 1991 and 1996.

He said the figure of Rs. 250 crores for the spending by various Governments on investigating the case was "not correct." The money spent by the CBI was a "minuscule fraction" of that figure, possibly Rs. 8 crores to Rs. 10 crores. He did not know from where the judge got the figure of Rs. 250 crores. "The Bofors case," he said, "throws up vital issues relating to probity in public life. Political leaders, middlemen and suppliers conspired to cause loss to the Government of India ... frequent changes of Governments added to the uncertainty of the investigation. Eventually judicial obstacles to trials are created."

Three times the Supreme Court reversed what was done by the High Court, but when the February 4, 2004 judgment of the Delhi High Court became final, ``a burial of the case was inevitable."

Asked whether the NDA Government influenced the prosecution leading to the discharge of BJP president L.K. Advani in the Babri demolition case, Mr. Jaitley said it was a "technical fault" that led to the discharge.

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