Misfortunes never come singly. Constantly under fire from a united Opposition for the numerous scams that have come to light in recent months, the Congress seems to have a lot more in store. The latest being the Income Tax tribunal ruling that Rs.41.2 crore was paid as kickbacks to Win Chadha and Ottavio Quattrocchi in the Swedish howitzer deal. Although the Congress pretends otherwise, it is common knowledge that public opinion is all for a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the 2G spectrum scam. The party's defiant ‘no' is only spoiling its image further.
K.D. Viswanaathan,
Coimbatore
It is bad time for the 125-year-old party, with more and more scams coming to the surface putting its leaders on the back foot. For the excesses committed during the Emergency, the Congress has conveniently put the blame on Sanjay Gandhi. But it cannot make anyone a scapegoat in the Bofors deal. The Congress should admit that Bofors was a mistake and punish the guilty if it is really interested in fighting corruption.
H.P. Murali,
Bangalore
The Bofors deal continues to haunt the Congress, whether or not Mr. Quattrocchi is brought to India to face trial. ‘Q' is as much an embarrassment to the Congress as the 1984 anti-Sikh riots are. The CBI under pressure from the Congress allowed him to escape and made no serious effort to get him extradited. The I-T Tribunal has confirmed that he did indeed receive kickbacks in the Bofors deal. But I doubt whether efforts will be made to get him here. The Congress will not let it happen.
A. Srikantaiah,
Bangalore
