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Baalu issue: BJP accuses PMO of ‘impropriety’

Neena Vyas

NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party here on Friday charged the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s Office with “impropriety” for writing “eight times” to the Ministry of Petroleum asking it to “expedite” allocation of natural gas to King Hi-Power, a company owned by the Shipping, Road Transport and Highways Minister T.R. Baalu’s son.

Allotment

Speaking to reporters, BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad, who also raised the issue in the Rajya Sabha, however, had no information of how the original allotment of gas was made to the company soon after the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam withdrew support to the National Democratic Alliance in 1999 and just before the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, joined the NDA.

When asked whether the NDA was at that time trying to cosy up to the DMK to forge the new alliance, Mr. Prasad said: “I have not said no Minister’s son should do any business. Let the Ministry of Petroleum explain.”

He was also asked at a press conference whether the NDA had allotted gas to Mr. Baalu’s company at preferential rates much lower than the going market price at the time. Mr. Prasad said “I do not know the details. Sometimes preferential rates are given.”

While preferring to remain virtually silent on the allocation of natural gas to King Hi- Power through the NDA regime up till December 2003 and the abrupt cut off of supply within a month of Mr. Baalu’s resignation from the Vajpayee Cabinet, Mr. Prasad emphasised that Dr. Singh’s office was guilty of “pursuing the naked commercial interest of a private company connected to a close relative of a Minister.”

Describing it as a “serious breach of propriety by the PMO,” Mr. Prasad that this issue was far more important than the details of gas allotment. In any case, Mr. Prasad said that it was for the Petroleum Ministry and the Gas Authority of India to come clean on the entire deal and the reasons why the allotment was cancelled.

The Minister concerned has already alleged that the NDA was guilty of a vengeful act and he was only trying to get justice for the company, its employees and shareholders. “What was wrong in it,” he had asked.

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