BJP to launch nationwide protest against coalgate

Aug 31, 2012 |

New Delhi

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The Bharatiya Janata Party's nationwide protest over the coal blocks allocations was kicked off on Thursday.

The three-day protest across 40 towns and cities in the country is being be led by senior BJP leaders like L.K. Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley.

The BJP has been demanding the cancellation of allocation of 142 coal blocks and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's resignation.

Party spokesperson Prakash Javadekar had earlier said that BJP would organise demonstrations in 40 cities across the country.

"These allotments were just to pocket the coal blocks. We have decided to launch a nationwide agitation and on 31st (August), we will begin our fight against corruption," Javadekar told reporters.

"On August 31, September 1 and 2, our leaders will go to 40 cities and we will launch our protest," he added.

The BJP has held Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who then held direct charge of the coal ministry, responsible for what has been estimated as a notional loss of Rs 1.86 lakh crores by the CAG in coal block allocations, and demanded his resignation.

The CAG report on coal block allocations states that nearly 150 coalfields were allotted to private and state-run firms without transparency and objectivity between 2005 and 2009.

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