New Delhi, October 21
Barely a day after BJP president Nitin Gadkari launched a frontal attack on the UPA government and accused it of corruption, bungling and mismanagement in organising the Commonwealth Games, his assault seems to be losing steam. NDA convenor and JD-U president Sharad Yadav in fact lightly dismissed today a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the matter. He, however, announced his support to Gadkari’s endeavour to raise the issue in a big way in the winter session of Parliament beginning November 9.

Yadav said he is in touch with all other parties and the “entire opposition will speak in one voice on corruption in CWG. We will build full pressure. Action should follow against all those involved in corruption.”

“When the session begins, all parties will jointly plan their strategy on this to speak in one voice,” he said.

On JPC, Yadav said: “Probe must take place but what should be its form will be decided only after talking to everybody.”

Later, JD-U sources dismissed the demand as not very effective.

Observers opine that Gadkari seemed to have raised his pitch too high, too soon. He had raised an accusing finger at the Prime Minister and his Cabinet colleagues. And even while he was addressing a press conference on Tuesday, the Income-Tax Department was raiding the premises of BJP activist Sudhanshu Mittal, who a day later claimed that he was being made a political scapegoat.

But more importantly Mittal refuted the basic premise of Gadkari’s argument that bills were deliberately inflated by CWG officials to pocket huge amounts. Gadkari had claimed that contractors had been asked to inflate the bills. But Mittal insisted that nobody asked him to do that.

Gadkari also proudly introduced his general secretary Vijay Goel as the principled man who quit the OC in protest against widespread corruption. But then it turned out that Goel had got himself and even his wife Preeti Goel accreditation as OC members, entitling them to special facilities during Games.

CWG officials asked contractors to inflate the bills so that they could pocket huge amounts. 

— Nitin Gadkari, BJP chief

It’s nonsense. Nobody asked me to inflate the bills. I am being made a political scapegoat.

— Sudhanshu Mittal, BJP activist