New Delhi, October 30
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today gave clean chit to External Affairs Minister Natwar Singh against whom adverse remarks had been passed by a UN inquiry report on Iraq’s oil-for-food programme. Left parties had demanded a probe into the allegations while the Opposition parties had demanded his resignation.
“The Prime Minister agreed that the facts mentioned in table 3 of the report of the independent inquiry committee are insufficient to arrive at a conclusion against the External Affairs Minister and stands by him,” the Prime Minister’s Media Adviser Sanjaya Baru
said. The report of the UN independent committee headed by Mr Paul Volcker had named Mr Natwar Singh and the Congress among the non-contractual beneficiaries in the Iraqi oil sales in 2001.
Mr Natwar Singh met the Prime Minister today following his return to the Capital from Moscow.
“The Government of India should investigate the matter. It is necessary to get further evidence and details before reaching any conclusion,” said a statement from the CPI-M politburo.
CPI general secretary A.B. Bardhan said the UN committee had come out with a final report in which the Congress, certain Indian companies and External Affairs Minister had been accused of kickbacks for getting contracts for buying oil for food.
The contracting company in both cases has been named as Masefield AG. Mr Natwar Singh is shown as the non-contractual beneficiary in connection with four million barrels of oil allotted to Masefield AG.
The BJP and JD(U) had demanded the resignation of Natwar Singh in the wake of the allegations.
Meanwhile, the External Affairs Minister said his record in public life for the past 50 years has been an “open book” and his personal integrity had never been questioned.
