AAP strikes again, govt to reopen cash-for-vote case

Will challenge special court verdict in High Court

The Aam Aadmi Party government in Delhi has decided to reopen the cash-for-vote case which rocked Parliament in 2008. The Kejriwal government plans to challenge in High Court verdict delivered by the special court which heard the case.

Delhi Minister Manish Sisodia on Wednesday said the government feels that the special court’s decision of acquitting six out of seven accused in the case was not fair and important evidence was ignored.

“The special court had discharged six out of seven accused in the case. But our special public prosecutor believes that the government must challenge the special court’s decision in the High Court. He said there was much crucial evidence, which was ignored before announcing the verdict. The Delhi Law Secretary has also given his nod to the special public prosecutor’s suggestion,” he said.

Sisodia said the evidence that was ignored was so strong that not only the discharged people will be re-interrogated but many new faces will also be unmasked.

“The case is a blot on the face of Indian democracy and we believe that this was the biggest corruption case in modern history where MPs were bribed to save the government,” he added.

He slammed the Sheila Dikshit government for not following the case properly.

“It seems like the previous Delhi government was not interested in following the case. But it does not matter what the previous government did. We will get to the bottom of this case to find all the culprits,” Sisodia said.

Ahead of the confidence vote on July 22, 2008 after the Left parties withdrew support over the Indo-US civilian nuclear cooperation deal, BJP MPs Ashok Argal and Faggan Singh Kulaste and former BJP MP Mahabir Singh Bhagora waved bundles of cash, which they said was offered to them by former Samajwadi Party MP Amar Singh to save the government through their vote in Parliament. 

Police lodged an FIR against Argal, Kulaste, Bhagora, Singh and added the names of L K Advani’s former aide and BJP MP Sudheendra Kulkarni and two others. BJP’s social activist Sohail Hindustani was also charged under the Prevention of Corruption Act. A special court had on November 22 last year discharged six of them.