Trying to wriggle out of corruption charges, BJP banks on skeletons in the cupboard of the Congress

Politics is a dirty game and mudslinging is a part of the game. Before elections, parties make a whole lot of promises and BJP was no exception. They had promised a clean corruption free government – but, already within one year, a number of irregularities have surfaced that has tarnished its image.
Instead of rooting out corruption, they are now trying to dilute the issue by bringing up corruption that the Congress had indulged in when the UPA2 was in power.
Where then is the change that had been promised by the Prime Minister Narenda Modi? Where is the new face of the new government?
We are seeing new wine in old bottle.
The Congress is seeking resignations of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhra Raje over their links with former IPL chief Lalit Modi and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan over Vyapam scam.
This has been reported in zeenews.india.com dated 23 July 2015.

And, to counter this, the BJP has brought up the issue of resignation of Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat over "liquor scam" worth hundreds of crores which has been revealed through a sting operation and "loot" carried out during the 2013 floods.
They have also added the issue of a charge sheet filed against Congress leader and former Arunachal Pradesh chief minister PK Thungon over a 1998 corruption case. He has been convicted only now in a corruption case after 17 years. The question BJP should ask themselves is – should BJP go the same way as the Congress? Where then is the promised change?
(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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BJP embarrassed as its own MP raises issue of corruption among party leaders

Within one year of being in office, the Narendra Modi government has been embarrassed by a number of revelations of corruption charges leveled against senior members of BJP and it has tried to play them down. During election meetings, Narendra Modi had said that ‘na khayenge, na hi khane denge’ (or words to that effect) meaning ‘we will not bribe others, neither will we accept bribe from others’.
But, one of its own MPs has now voiced his concerns to party president Amit Shah.
This has been reported in ibnlive.com dated 21 July 2015.

The man who has embarrassed BJP is none other than Shanta Kumar – he has raised the issues of corruption that the party is facing in the states of Rajasthan and Maharashtra. In his opinion, such acts are affecting the morale of the party workers. He has also called for setting up an ethics committee to act as a Lokpal to keep a check on party leaders.
The irregularities relate to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and ex Indian Premier League chief Lalit Modi's travel request, Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje alleged help to Lalit Modi to get UK stay permit. Then there is the multi-crore Vyapam scam in Madhya Pradesh – the death of as many as 49 people are believed to be linked to this high-profile scam.
And, last but not least, the alleged chikki scam in Maharashtra in which the name of BJP MLA Pankaja Munde is coming up – she is being accused of a Rs 206 crore chikki scam and also of awarding a contract to build dam to a private company without tender.
(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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Vyapam, the scam of scams in Madhya Pradesh, has leaders running for cover

The Vyapam scam has, apparently, been going on ever since 2000 when the first FIR had been registered and, with several deaths being attributed to Vyaam in some way of the other, it would take some serious digging to unearth the magnitude of the scam.
The CBI has been given the responsibility to investigate and it would be a Herculean task for them because more than 1,000 complaints are still pending investigation with the special task force (STF) and, at least 200 of these complaints have crucial information that can be converted into FIRs.
The first FIR into the scam, registered by the police in Madhya Pradesh's Chhatarpur district in 2000, is yet to be closed.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 10 July 2015.

It is understood that the CBI officers will have to spend at least three weeks with the STF to understand the status of investigations and then take over the investigation. As far as statistics go, after taking over investigations into the Vyapam scam, the STF was working on 55 different FIRs. They have presented chargesheets in 27 cases.
As a result, more than 1,930 people were arrested while 550 others are on the run. Since the names of many high profile individuals have come up, it would be difficult for CBI to create the true picture with the help of pieces of the jigsaw puzzle.
As per the Supreme Court ruling, the CBI will handle the investigation of the Vyapam scam in Madhya Pradesh with more than 30 deaths allegedly linked to the job recruitment scandal.
(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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