NEW DELHI: The Bofors gun payoff scandal flared up again yesterday with the election-wrapped Congress coming under all round attack over the CBI decision to remove Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, the lone surviving suspect in the case, from its list of wanted persons.
The 12-year Interpol Red Corner Notice, or lookout notice, against Quattrocchi, who has till date evaded interrogation, was taken off from the “wanted” section of the agency’s website, reportedly on the legal advice of Attorney General Milon Banerjee in October last year. As the CBI’s move was scooped by the Indian Express newspaper yesterday, two days before the third round of India’s five-phase general elections, it provided readymade ammunition to political parties seeking to end five years of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government.
Most of the opposition parties, including the Left bloc have strongly criticized the Congress-led government and CBI. The Congress-led government has been accused of “misusing” CBI by removing Quattrocchi’s name. Dismissing these charges, Union Law Minister Hansraj Bhardwaj said: “This is a politically motivated allegation. The government has no role in the judicial process. The law will take its own course.”
Condemning CBI’s decision, Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate L.K. Advani said: “If this news is true then I consider both the prime minister and Congress president guilty (for withdrawal Red Corner notice against Quattrocchi).”
Defending his party, senior Congress leader M. Veerappa Moily said: “We have nothing to do with Quattrocchi. The Bofors case has been in public for over two decades. If there was any proof of his involvement in the scam, the NDA which ruled the country for seven years should have taken some steps.” Not convinced by explanations given by Congress leaders, Communist Party of India (CPI) national secretary D. Raja said: “The role of CBI is questioned in a number of instances. It is now for government and CBI to explain the position.”
Criticizing it as a step to “bury” Bofors-scam, in a statement, the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) has asked Congress to explain this “cover-up.” “Coming in wake of failure to successfully prosecute all those involved in bribery case, it is evident that as long as there is a Congress-led government in office, the subversion of justice will continue,” the CPI-M stated.
