The Hindu : Front Page : Jaswant Singh may have no name to disclose

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Aug 01, 2006

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Front Page

Jaswant Singh may have no name to disclose

Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI: Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Jaswant Singh on Monday sent another letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the "mole" controversy, even as his BJP colleague V.K. Malhotra indicated that he had already revealed all that he knew in the matter.

Party leaders privately told reporters that Mr. Singh had already told the Prime Minister all that he knew and that he had no further information about the "mole," who conveyed to the United States India's plan, or the lack of it, to test a nuclear bomb during the Narasimha Rao regime.

Mr. Singh may have no name with him at all although at a recent press conference he went to the extent of saying the "mole" was now living abroad.

Mr. Malhotra criticised the Prime Minister for not giving Mr. Singh an appointment. Also, it was "not appropriate" on the part of the Prime Minister's media adviser to release to the press the text of Dr. Singh's reply to Mr. Jaswant Singh.

What has clearly embarrassed the BJP is that the Prime Minister made it clear that Mr. Singh had disclosed no name to him.

On Monday, some party leaders claimed that Mr. Singh now disclosed whatever he knew to both the former Prime Minister, A.B. Vajpayee, and the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, L.K. Advani.

The BJP is now bracing itself for a possible discussion on the issue in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, as demanded by some MPs. The issue has become all the more sensitive, party leaders admit, as it concerns a matter of national security and shows up the party leader in a bad light.

PTI reports:

Mr. Singh "told the [BJP] meeting that he has no definite name of the spy, and all that he has said was based on a hunch," party sources said.

"He said it is up to the Government to use them as a lead to catch hold of that person," the sources said.

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