Cong brass knew of Arjun’s speech
Top leaders in the Congress were aware of the contents of Mr Arjun Singh’s speech on the Bhopal gas disaster much before he spoke on it in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. This was because he sent a written text of his speech well in advance to the concerned in the government and thus sought their approval.
The Congress on Thursday distanced itself from Mr Singh by refusing to comment on his speech as a well thought out strategy. The senior Congress leader absolved the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi of having played any role in the exit of former chief of Union Carbide Warren Anderson but he revealed how the Union home ministry (headed by late P.V. Narsimha Rao) was trying to help Mr Anderson in getting the bail.
“Yes, we got the text of Arjun Singh’s speech well in advance,” sources said. According to the Congress insiders, the former Union minister knows very well how to speak and what to speak on such sensitive issues. Mr Singh asked the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take up compensation and extradition of Anderson with the US President Barach Obama.
“We believe it is important to look forward,” Congress spokesperson Jayanthi Natarajan said when asked by reporters how the AICC views Mr Singh’s insinuation against Rao.
Ms Natarajan, who was subjected to a volley of questions on Mr Singh’s statement said that what the senior leader has said “speaks for itself”.
“I am not a spokesperson for Mr Arjun Singhji or home ministry of that time or government of that time,” was her response when asked whether she endorses what Mr Singh said.
“It is a statement made by Arjun Singh as a Rajya Sabha member. I do not wish to comment on it,” she added.
Asked whether Mr Singh made the statement as a Congress member, Ms Natarajan said, “He spoke as an individual member of the House and he is a member of Congress Party.”
Her response was “no comments” when asked whether the party considers Mr Singh a loyal soldier of the party. She refused to speak on the merits of what Mr Singh said saying the party has “nothing further to add. What Arjun spoke in Rajya Sabha is open...”.
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