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Virbhadra dismisses graft allegations, threatens legal action

NEW DELHI: Dismissing allegations that he had received money from a private steel company, former Union Minister Virbhadra Singh on Saturday threatened legal action against all the people behind the “motivated campaign”.

He dubbed the graft allegations as a “cheap political stunt” and said he was ready to face “any inquiry” by “any agency” in this regard.

“This is totally false, malicious and motivated and I strongly deny this. Furthermore I am willing to face any inquiry in this regard by any agency,” Singh said.

He claimed that the issue was being raked up in the media by his detractors to influence the Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections.

“It is a cheap political stunt and nothing more,” said Singh, a five-time Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh.

Singh’s statement comes in the wake of reports in a section of the media claiming that he and several others received payoffs from ISPAT Industries.

“...I challenge anyone to prove that any undue favour was accorded to ISPAT Industries, this company was not favoured by the Steel Ministry in any way, during my tenure,” said Singh, who was the Union Minister for Steel between May 2009 and January 2011.

Contesting media reports, which claimed that payments were made to one ‘VBS’, Singh said, “First and foremost I do not write my initials as VBS but as VS.”

“Once the polls are over I will take legal action against all the people who are behind this false, motivated and negative campaign against me,” he said.

When contacted, Vinod Mittal, who was the promoter of ISPAT Industries when the alleged payoffs were made, refused to comment saying he was not aware of the details as he was abroad.

“I am not in India... Right now I am in such a place where there is no Internet. So I cannot comment now, I have not seen the documents,” Mittal told PTI over phone.

“You can ask JSW Steel and Sajjan Jindal. They are the promoters of ISPAT now,” he said.

Mittal said he would return to Mumbai on Wednesday.

JSW Steel had acquired 41 per cent stake in ISPAT Industries in December 2010. JSW Steel later increased its stake to 46.75 per cent and remains the single-largest shareholder in JSW ISPAT.

In reply to an email query, a JSW spokesperson said controversy pertains to a period before ISPAT was acquired by JSW.

“The period referred in your email is prior to acquisition by JSW Steel. The previous management can only clarify on this issue,” the spokesperson said. — PTI

Kejriwal released, urges people to join protest

NEW DELHI: Arvind Kejriwal and his supporters, who were detained during a a protest demanding resignation of Law Minister Salman Khurshid, were today released from the makeshift jail in Outer Delhi.

Kejriwal said they will continue their protest at Parliament Street till Khurshid is removed from the Cabinet and arrested along with his wife for alleged irregularities in the functioning of a Trust run by the minister and his wife Louise.

Both Mr Khurshid and Mrs Khurshid have denied the charges.

The police announced the release of Kejriwal and others, including disabled people, who were detained at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Bawana since last evening after they were picked up from Janpath during their protest.

“We have released them from detention,” Delhi Police spokesperson Rajan Bhagat said.

Besides Kejriwal, the others who were detained included Manish Sisodia and Gopal Rai.

Kejriwal sought to up the ante by calling for throwing the UPA government out of power.

He tweeted, “Rise and throw this corrupt empire. Bhagat Singh gave up his life for the country. Subhash Chandra Bose gave up his life and career. What would u do?

“My appeal to the youth — come and join. You are not doing favour to anyone. Fight for ur own future. Parliament Street police station (will be the) beginning of downfall of corrupt empire. Parliament Street police station will be the next Tahrir Square,” he said. — PTI

Allegations baseless, says Louise Khurshid

NEW DELHI: Terming as “baseless innuendos” the allegations of “money bungling” by her Trust, Law Minister Salman Khurshid’s wife Louise launched a scathing attack on activist Arvind Kerjriwal accusing him of “doing politics using the shoulders of the disabled”.

She also trashed speculation about her husband resigning over the issue, saying there is no reason why her husband should step down. “There is no inquiry against Khurshid either by the central government or any report by the CAG. So why should he step down,” Ms. Louise said.

She was also critical of a television group against which she has filed a defamation suit for a sting operation on the issue saying more such suits will be filed including one by the Law Minister himself.

“They could find only three persons to say that they have not received anything, whereas we have provided artificial limbs to thousands of people. And we alone did not do all this. Our MLAs like Vivek Bansal, Jitin Prasada and others also organised camps for the disabled in various areas where artificial limbs were distributed. They are all disturbed now.

“We have spent huge money serving the people of our constituency Farrukhabad for which we did not take anything from the government. We will not soil our hands for an amount like Rs 70 lakh. We have done no wrong. All this is totally false,” she said.

She denied any inter-ministerial rivalry behind the controversy but wondered why the Ministry for Social Justice and Empowerment did not give papers and documents to the CAG and others, when they were sought.

“The Ministry should have given the accounts. We had submitted the utilisation certificates and all documents,” she said adding that the ministry for “some inexplicable reason” said they were not concerned with it, when the CAG made certain queries regarding the Trust’s work.

“There already have enough innuendos. I do not want to add up to them. I will not make any allegation but it was quite shocking that they did not give documents,” Louise said. — PTI

Pakistani Taliban plans to target media for Malala coverage

ISLAMABAD: Angered by the coverage of its attempt to assassinate teenage rights activist Malala Yousufzai, the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan has drawn up plans to target Pakistani and international media organisations across the country.
Pakistani Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud has issued "special directions" to his subordinates in different cities of Pakistan to target media groups, BBC Urdu reported.

An unnamed Interior Ministry official said intelligence agencies had intercepted a phone conversation between Mehsud and a subordinate named Nadeem Abbas alias Intiqami, in which the Taliban chief was heard directing Abbas to attack media organisations.

Mehsud directed Abbas to target offices of media groups in Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad and other cities.

Media groups and personalities who were denouncing the Taliban after the attack on Malala should be the focus of such attacks.

The Interior Ministry has issued orders to beef up security near the offices of media organisations in Pakistan following Mehsud’s call, the official told BBC Urdu.

Authorities have been directed to deploy additional policemen in areas where media offices are located.

The help of the Frontier Constabulary will be sought if needed, the official said.

The Chief Commissioner of Islamabad and Chief Secretaries of the four provinces have been directed to meet owners of media groups and address their security concerns.

The ministry has also alerted religious scholars who had publicly denounced the Taliban to be cautious, the official said.

Most newspapers and TV news channels have been very critical of the Taliban following the attack on 14-year-old Malala on Tuesday in Swat, a former stronghold of the militants.

The National Peace Award winner is currently on ventilator in the critical care unit of a military hospital in Rawalpindi after doctors removed a bullet lodged near her spine.

Malala and two schoolmates were injured when Taliban fighters opened fire on their school van in Mingora, the main city of Swat.

The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan claimed the responsibility for the attack, saying Malala was targeted for backing pro-West views and a secular government.

A Taliban spokesman has also threatened to kill Malala's father Ziauddin Yousufzai and other members of her family. — PTI

UP: Abducted CMO returns to work

Gonda (UP): Chief medical officer of Uttar Pradesh's Gonda district SP Singh, who had been "untraceable" since Monday night after being allegedly abducted by minister of state for revenue Vinod Kumar Singh, on Friday made a dramatic appearance at his office in Gonda on Friday evening. CMO Singh held a meeting with the officials of the district administration and police, sources in the CMO office said in Gonda.

Singh later said that he has no complaint with the minister after his resignation. He said the Superintendent of Police met him in the evening and has assured full security.  Similar assurance has been given also by senior officials in Lucknow, he added.

The CMO said he was mentally upset after the incident and therefore had gone to Lucknow. The CMO was "untraceable" after allegedly being abducted by the minister on Monday night and initially even his family members claimed he could not be contacted as his mobile phones were swtiched off.

Home department officials had in Lucknow yesterday said efforts were on to contact the CMO Singh for his statement on reports regarding his alleged abduction by a state minister.

"We have not been able to contact him till now and as per the reports received from Gonda he is on leave since Tuesday," Secretary (Home) Kamal Saxena had said.