M A I N   N E W S

Congress floor managers bail out FM
R. Suryamurthy and Manoj Kumar
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 30
The CBDT issue, which could have turned into a major embarrassment for the UPA government as the NDA-led Opposition alleged constitutional impropriety on the part of Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, was saved by the deft floor management by the Congress as the supporting parties SP, BSP and Left came in his defence.

After the Nanavati Commission Report and the ATR had forced Jagdish Tytler to resign from the Cabinet as the Left and supporting parties joined hand with the NDA and SAD to demand his resignation, the Congress floor managers worked overtime to ensure the support of supporting allies lest, they faced embarrassment on the last day of the monsoon session today.

Denying the allegations of the Opposition, Mr Chidambaram asserted that he was not informed by the CBDT about engaging his wife. “ When the CBDT engaged me in January 2004, in the same case, the file was not put up to the then Finance Minister.”

He said the Income Tax Department would move the Supreme Court on the case regarding 43 mills, which went against the department in the Madras High Court in which his lawyer wife had appeared as senior counsel.

Denying the Opposition charge that his family members had benefited in the case, the Finance Minister said, the insinuation that one Sri Karpagambal Mills Limited in Cholapuram in Tamil Nadu, said to be owned by his brother, was among the 43 mills in the income tax case before the Madras High Court was false.

Dissatisfied with the remark of the Finance Minister the NDA members staged a walk out.

Earlier, Finance Minister looked much relieved and the treasury benches expressed satisfaction by thumping tables, when Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav came to his defence saying it was not proper for those in politics to tarnish each other. “If a lawyer is competent, she can be engaged by any department.”

BJP members were on their legs, when RJD member Devendra Prasad Yadav made a remark about former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who was present in the House, while defending Mr Chidambaram. It angered the BJP members so much that they stormed to the well.

Shouting slogans “Finance Minister resign”, the BJP members took to their seats only after Speaker Somnath Chatterjee ordered that Yadav’s remark be expunged.

Earlier, raising the issue, BJP Deputy Leader V K Malhotra wondered whether any Minister could plead ignorance about what was happening in his department and his house, leading to heated exchanges between the Opposition and treasury benches.

In a mild manner, Gurudas Dasgupta (CPI) said it was improper for the wife of the Finance Minister to take up the assignment, but also faulted the Opposition for politicising the issue. “Those staying in glass houses should not throw stones on others’ houses.”

Brajesh Pathak (BSP) asked, “ Is it a crime for a competent person to be a relative of a politician? ” Since the AIDMK does not have any member in the Lok Sabha, though they raised the issue in the Upper House, Opposition’s attack soon weekened.

The Rajya Sabha had to adjourned twice, when Opposition members led by AIDMK members protested, while expressing dissatisfaction with the minister’s reply.

Meanwhile, the AIADMK leader N Jyoti asked the Finance Minister to come out clean on different questions raised by him before the winter session of Parliament.

He warned that “I have a number of documents to indict Mr Chidambaram of constitutional impropriety and would place them in the House.”

It may be pointed out that Mr Chidambaram had to resign as Commerce Minister from the Narasimha Rao government in 1993 as his family owned some shares in the scam-tained firm, Fairgrowth, which was allegedly involved in the multi-crore Harshad Mehta scam.

It was alleged that 10,000 promoter’s shares were allotted out of turn to Chidambaram’s family members as a ‘gift’ for the 4.5 billon rupees investment made by the public sector companies in the Fairgrowth company during his tenure as Commerce Minister.