Cong seeks action against Ananth for Radia link

Both Ananth Kumar and Radia’s Vaishnavi Communications have dismissed the allegations.

Following reports of an alleged link carried in a magazine and a TV news channel, the Congress accused Kumar, who was Civil Aviation Minister in the then NDA government, of having had an “intimate business relationship” with Radia and directed 10 questions at the BJP, which has been strident in demanding setting up of a Joint Parliamentary Committee to probe the 2G spectrum scam, allegedly involving Radia.

The party also levelled a charge that Radia had “close relations with the Prime Minister’s Office during the NDA rule through a close relative of the Prime Minister.”

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi told reporters on Friday that “BJP’s silence at the revelations about the lobbyist’s role during the BJP government and the antics of its senior general secretary (Ananth Kumar) are eloquent. It has once again proved that the BJP is a corrupt party and that it has no regard for national security.”  

Nira Radia’s former partner Rao Dheeraj Singh surfaced on Thursday to claim that Radia and Kumar fixed deals together.

Senior BJP leader Arun Jaitely, in a suddenly held press meet, accused the Congress of relying on a person who had spent two years in jail. This person was a relative of a Congress leader and the party depended on completely unsubstantiated charges.

The Congress’s questions to the BJP include: “Why was Nira Radia’s trust allotted land at Vasant Kunj (in Delhi)? Was L K Advani admiring Radia’s lobbying skills that he laid the foundation stone for this trust? Why was no action taken against Swiss bank accounts that were opened during this time by Radia? The money in these accounts, do they belong to Radia alone or BJP leaders? Were these the papers that Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa threatened to link?

“When will Ananth Kumar be removed as general secretary? Will the BJP hold anti-corruption rallies at Ananth Kumar’s residence and Bangalore? Will the BJP now want us to wait for inquiry and proof? Will the BJP disrupt Parliament on this issue? Why were cabinet papers leaked?”

Singhvi also targeted the credibility of the Opposition over corruption. Kumar described the charges levelled against him as “completely false” and said he will initiate legal action against those who made these allegations.