The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) challenges the Congress and the BJP to disclose the sources from whom they are getting more than 80% of their funds being spent in the Lok Sabha election campaign. The silence of these two parties on the Delhi High Court judgment which held them guilty of accepting foreign funds in violation of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act makes it clear that the Congress and the BJP are hand in glove on the issue of taking huge financial favours from corporate houses in return of providing them undue benefits wherever these two parties are in government. Are the Congress and the BJP in a position to come clean on the following questions : * Can the Congress deny that it has received nearly Rs 10 crore as funds from foreign source in violation of the law between 2003-04 and 2011-12 ? * Can the BJP deny that it has received almost Rs 20 crore foreign funds over the same period ? * Why is home minister Mr Sushil Kumar Shinde silent after the Delhi High Court found his ministry to be giving a wrong explanation on the foreign funding of the Congress and the BJP ? When the AAP, which came into existence barely 16 months has put all funds received by it on its website for the public to see, why are the Congress and BJP so secretive about their funds and sources ? * Can the BJP deny that it has even received foreign funds from the Dow Chemical Company, which acquired the Union Carbide Corporation, that was responsible for India’s worst industrial disaster - the 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy? The Delhi High Court’s judgment on the petition jointly filed by Mr EAS Sarma (former secretary in the central government) and the Association for Democratic Reforms, makes it clear that the home ministry and the Election Commission have to take action against these two parties. The High Court judgment has come at a very crucial time, when the campaigning for the Lok sabha elections is in full swing. The AAP demands that the probe into the foreign funding of the Congress and the BJP should be monitored by the Election Commission, since the home ministry, which virtually gave a clean chit to these two parties, cannot be expected to complete an impartial investigation. The EC, which has taken concrete steps in curbing the use of black money in elections, should treat this case as an example to come down harsh on the corporate-political nexus, exposed by the landmark High Court judgment. The funds received from the Indian subsidiaries of England based Vedanta Resources by the Congress and BJP raises serious allegations of conflict of interest and bribery. These allegations cannot be brushed under the carpet and the AAP demands that the EC should seek all details from these parties about all clearances provided by their governments to these companies and when did they receive funds from these companies.
Posted on: Sat, 29 Mar 2014 15:21:43 +0000