Bengal: BJP mum on Narada tapes, allege Congress, Left
The CPI(M) and Congress have alleged that the BJP is remaining silent on referring the Narada sting to the ethics panel of the upper house as it wants to garner TMC’s votes to get key bills passed in the Rajya Sabha.
The CPI(M) and Congress have alleged that the BJP is remaining silent on referring the Narada sting to the ethics panel of the upper house as it wants to garner TMC’s votes to get key bills passed in the Rajya Sabha.
The BJP does not have adequate strength to pass bills in the upper house.
Baffled by the allegation, BJP’s national secretary Siddharth Nath Singh said the Congress and Left Front together helped Trinamool Congress hush up the Narada scandal in the Rajya Sabha, a statement which has united the Left Front and Congress further.
CPI(M) Rajya Sabha member Ritabrata Banerjee and his senior colleague in the upper house Pradip Bhattacharya of the Congress have challenged Singh to prove his allegation by participating in an open debate.
Both Banerjee and Bhattacharya have made a counter-allegation that it was rather the BJP members in the Rajya Sabha which remained silent on the issue of referring the matter to the ethics committee of the Rajya Sabha.
Read: Calcutta High Court asks for bribery tapes from Narada
“Singh’s allegation is a lie of the highest order and I openly challenge him to prove his point,” said Banerjee. He also pointed out that while CPI(M) members of the Rajya Sabha were on their feet demanding probe against Trinamool MPs seen accepting money in the Narada tapes, the Congress Rajya Sabha member Pradip Bhattacharya raised his voice with the same demand.
When contacted, Bhattacharya also told HT that Singh’s allegations were totally false and the BJP was going slow on the Narada sting and hadn’t referred it to the ethics committee.
“It was evident that both Congress and Left Front MPs were united in pressing for referring the matter to the ethics committee of the house, while BJP members in the house remained silent on the matter,” Bhattacharya pointed out. Meanwhile, Banerjee has pointed out that since the treasury bench of the Rajya Sabha remained totally silent, the matter could not be sent to the House’s ethics committee.
“BJP’s commitment in bailing Trinamool out is exposed. I am challenging Singh to have an open debate with me in this regard and waiting for him to accept the challenge,” said Banerjee.
Read: Narada sting operation delivers ‘poetic justice’ to former MLA