Cong refuses to give clean chit to Virbhadra Singh

Even as Himachal Pradesh chief minister Virbhadra Singh maintained that corruption charges against him are a political conspiracy, his party, however, distanced itself from his position.

Even as Himachal Pradesh chief minister Virbhadra Singh maintained that corruption charges against him are a political conspiracy, his party, however, distanced itself from his position. The Congress on Monday refused to give any clean chit to Singh who is facing corruption charges for alleged involvement with a power company.

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"We do not give any clean chit to anyone. It can be only given by legal authorities, courts and police authorities," said Congress spokesperson Sanjay Jha.

The Congress also refused to buckle under the Opposition pressure and maintained that the charges have to be established first before any public scrutiny. "For any responsible demand, you have to follow the process, you do not prejudge....Once again we are jumping the gun. Let Lokayukta investigate," Jha said.

The party’s reaction comes two days after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said, "I did not have time to apply my mind about what is the truth in the allegations against Himachal Pradesh CM"

BJP leader Arun Jaitley has alleged that there is an "open and shut case of corruption" against Singh as he had received Rs 1.5 crore and Rs 2.4 crore, through cheques in his and his wife’s account from Venture Energy and Technology Pvt Ltd.