FM said investigation are underway in Robert Vadra’s land deals in Haryana
Robert Vadra. (Photo: PTI)
New Delhi: Hitting out at the Congress, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday said that “prima facie there is a case for investigation” against Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s son-in-law Robert Vadra’s land deals in Haryana. On the National Herald case, Mr Jaitley also said tax exemption given to the Congress was under question and that the party had lot of answering to do.
Talking about Mr Vadra’s land deals in Haryana, Mr Jaitley said it was for the new state government to take action in the matter.
“Prima facie there is a case for investigation (against Mr Vadra),” Mr Jaitley told a news channel. He said, “it does not happen you start with almost negligible capital, and that turns into crores and crores of rupees within a matter of a year or two. That does not happen in normal transactions.” When asked if he thought that the tax exemption given to the Congress was under question due to National Herald case, Mr Jaitley said: “Certainly, it reflects on that because if you misuse the exempted money and use it for non-exempted purpose your exemption itself will be at stake.”
The Congress party has a lot of answering to do.” He said that the CBDT was taking appropriate action in the matter and making inquiries.
Mr Jaitley also dropped hints that a minister in the previous UPA government might be one of those who had stashed money abroad. “I know who you are hinting at. But please wait for the appropriate time,” he said.
Asked if he was not denying that there could be a minister from the UPA government, Mr Jaitley quipped, “I am neither confirming nor denying, I am only smiling.” He said that in case charges are “approved against some politician and that politician, he or she happens to be member of a political party the names will be made public.”
"The government intends to tell the Supreme Court that it will make all those names public against whom charges are being filed on the issue of black money stashed abroad, he said.
The NDA government has come under criticism from Opposition parties for telling the Supreme Court on October 17 that it cannot disclose such details given by countries with which India has double taxation avoidance agreement (DTAA).
Mr Jaitley said that India got this list of names from Germany under a treaty which said that “you can’t use these names for political purpose” and can’t disclose these names until charges are filed. He said that there could be some NRIs who hold legitimate accounts. While charges would be filed against those who illegally stashed money abroad, “can’t defame others whose accounts are not illegal,” he said.
“All we said is that those account details which are filed in the court will be made public. The Supreme Court should not declare that all accounts should be made available to somebody who declares it in public,” said Mr Jaitley.
Meanwhile, the Congress on Wednesday asked the Modi government not to resort to blackmail on the issue of naming black money- holders and dared it to come out with full information without indulging in “selective leakage.”
“The Congress is not going to be blackmailed under any such threat. Do not try to blackmail us. Stricter possible action should be taken against whoever is involved in it but that should not be inspired by vindictiveness and it should also not be half- truths,” said Congress general secretary Ajay Maken. He was reacting to Mr Jaitley’s remarks on Tuesday that disclosure of names of those holding illicit foreign accounts would embarrass the Opposition party.
Mr Maken said that the government should not limit the declaration of names only to 136 individuals. “We want to tell the BJP and the Prime Minister that half-truth is not the
truth. They should not go for selective and vindictive leakages. They should come out with all the names,” he said. At the AICC briefing, party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi asked the BJP government “not to threaten the Congress.” “It is not going to have any impact. Do not issue threat to us in reply to our questions. Do not insult the intelligence of people by first protecting black money account-holders and then suggesting that it has been done by somebody else,” he said.
( Source : dc correspondent )
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