Bharatiya Janata Party vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Tuesday charged that a “deal” had been struck between the Congress and BSP president and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati to withdraw the disproportionate assets case against her in return for support to the United Progressive Alliance government.
Talking to journalists here, Mr. Naqvi demanded that the ‘deal' be made public before Congress MP Rahul Gandhi started his yatra in Uttar Pradesh.
(In a speech after the inauguration of the Rs. 685-crore National Dalit Memorial and Green Garden at Noida recently, Ms. Mayawati said when the Central Bureau of Investigation under the BJP had initiated cases against her for amassing alleged disproportionate assets, Congress president Sonia Gandhi had assured her that there would be justice when the Congress came to power at the Centre. “But in eight years, the Congress, which misuses the CBI, has kept the cases alive to gain political mileage.”)
Mr. Naqvi said the BSP's support to the UPA government should be “returned” by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi before Mr. Gandhi began his campaign.
“The Congress and Mr. Gandhi should disclose to the people the nature of the ‘deal',” he said.
Mr. Naqvi said the BJP would release a ‘black paper,' detailing the scams, corruption and crime under Ms. Mayawati's regime.
He said the Jan Swabhiman Yatras undertaken by senior BJP leaders Rajnath Singh and Kalraj Mishra received an enthusiastic response. The yatras would end in Ayodhya on November 17, and a public meeting planned there would be addressed by BJP president Nitin Gadkari.
Mr. Naqvi said the outcome of the by-elections, including the one in Hisar, would guide the future course of politics with the Congress and its allies, as well as those supporting it such as the BSP and the Samajwadi Party, having been pushed on to the backfoot on the issue of corruption.
