JOIN USSMK should face probe: Team Anna
Team Anna on Sunday demanded that External Affairs Minister S M Krishna should face an inquiry for his alleged role in illegal mining activities in Karnataka.
Addressing a gathering at Jantar Mantar where Gandhian Anna Hazare began his fast, Team Anna member Prashant Bhushan said that the iron ore mining activities started when Krishna was the chief minister of Karnataka. He should face the probe rather than evading it.
Questioning Krishna move to the Supreme Court seeking a stay against a Lokayukta probe on his role in illegal mining, Bhushan said: “If he is honest, he should face the probe and get the clean chit from investigating agency”.
Anna Team members have been pressing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to constitute a special investigative team to probe “illegalities” committed by 15 ministers of the UPA government including Krishna.
Bhushan also demanded a probe into Krishna’s role in de-reserving huge tracts of forest land for mining and also in the Mysore Minerals Limited (MML), the Karnataka government owned mining company. Though they have received the letter from Krishna clarifying the allegations against him, Team Anna rejected it saying it was nothing but it the same reply given to the Supreme Court, which is hearing the case.
However, Krishna, in a letter to the PM and Anna Hazare on Friday last, rubbished allegations of corruption and wrongdoing. “I would like to conclude by emphatically denying all the allegations made in the letters.
“It is unfortunate that the allegations made are based on erroneous information, wrong facts, incorrect understanding and convenient interpretations to discredit me,” Krishna wrote. “I am a little surprised and confused that you and your colleagues took objection to even me approaching the Hon'ble Supreme Court contesting the baseless allegations made against me,” he said in the letter to Hazare.