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Vociferous demand in Rajya Sabha to identify and drop Minister

Special Correspondent

BJP wants Prime Minister to intervene, order an investigation

NEW DELHI: The Opposition in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday vociferously demanded that the Prime Minister identify the Union Minister who sought to influence the Madras High Court Judge and drop him from the Union Council of Ministers.

Raising the issue, Leader of the Opposition Arun Jaitley said the development was disturbing since the Judge made it known in public that a Union Minister had tried to pressure him to grant anticipatory bail in a case.

Mr. Jaitley said this not only amounted to interference in the administration of justice, for which the judiciary can take cognisance but it also amounted to an act of misdemeanour by a public servant and went against the concept of separation of power.

He said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should write to the Chief Justice of India to conduct an administrative inquiry, ask the telecommunication department to provide for records, establish the identity of the Minister and drop him from the Council.

Brinda Karat (CPI-M) said the Minister concerned had blatantly misused his power. The incident also established a nexus between him and the businessman who has been charged in a case of forgery, in which the whistle blower was murdered.

She said the country looked up to the Prime Minster to uphold values and wondered why Dr. Singh was maintaining a “deafening silence.” She said the Prime Minister should either take action or say the Minister concerned is not guilty.

V. Maitreyan (AIADMK) said that three weeks ago when he spoke on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address he warned the Prime Minister about the company he kept and the ‘tainted’ Ministers being accommodated, including some from Tamil Nadu, who did no credit to the PM and would only bring disgrace.

“At that time, I did not anticipate that in less than a month my words would become prophetic. Pradhan Mantriji, “aap ki Ganga maili ho gayi, In paapiyon ke paap dhote, dhote” (Mr. Prime Minister your Ganges has become polluted by cleansing these wrong doers)” the AIADMK MP said paraphrasing a popular Hindi film song.

Terming the development a serious matter, he urged the government to obtain a report both from the Madras High Court and the Chief Justice of India as to which Minister was involved; register a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act against him for abuse of position; dismiss the Minister involved; and direct the CBI to expand the probe in the case by including the role of the Minister.

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