Breaking his silence on the WikiLeaks expose, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday rejected allegations that MPs were bribed to win the crucial July 2008 trust vote during the tenure of the UPA-I government headed by him and termed the charges as “speculative, unverified and unverifiable”.
“The government rejects the allegations absolutely and firmly. I wish to make it clear that nobody from the Congress party or the government engaged in any unlawful act during the July 22, 2008 trust vote,” Prime Minister Singh told both Houses of Parliament on Friday.
Earlier, the PM said he had no knowledge of votes being purchased and that he was not involved in any of the transactions. “I am not involved in any of these transactions. I have not authorised anyone to purchase any votes. I am not aware of any purchase of votes. Certainly, I am not involved in any such things,” the PM said at the India Today conclave on allegations that MPs were bought for the 2008 no-confidence vote.
However, the issue rocked Parliament for the second day on Friday. The BJP, rejecting the Prime Minister’s reply, threatened to move a privilege motion against him for misleading both Houses. Retaliating, the Congress also threatened to move a breach of privilege against Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj on the charge of defying Speaker Meira Kumar.
However, standing his ground, the Prime Minister pointed out that the UPA’s victory in the 2009 general elections disproved the Opposition’s charges. He reminded Parliament that the BJP and Left had earlier made allegations of bribery during the trust vote an election issue, but in the 2009 General Election they were rejected by the people of India. “How did the people respond to those allegations,” the Prime Minister asked, adding, “I am disappointed that the Opposition has forgotten what happened thereafter.” He said the “principal Opposition party (BJP), which had 138 seats in the 14th Lok Sabha, was reduced to 116 in the 15th Lok Sabha. The Left parties found that their tally was reduced from 59 to 24.” He then said it “is the Congress party alone which increased its tally from 145 to 206, an increase of 61 seats.” The Prime Minister went on amidst thumping of desks by the ruling benches: “It is unfortunate that the Opposition continues to raise old charges that have been debated, discussed and rejected by the people of India. It is most surprising that speculative, unverified and unverifiable communications should be given dignity and seized upon by the Opposition parties to revive old charges that have been soundly rejected.”
He made it clear that “no one from the Congress party or the government indulged in any unlawful act during the trust vote during July 2008” and that “UPA-I always enjoyed the confidence of the people”. He maintained that “UPA-II has been formed in the 15th Lok Sabha and enjoys the confidence of this House and the people of India”.
Taking the battle to the Opposition camp, the Prime Minister said that “in July 2008, the government moved a motion of confidence. In an open vote that was taken on the floor of the House, the government won the confidence of the Lok Sabha by 275 votes for and 256 against.” He pointed out that the “allegations of bribery were investigated by a committee constituted by the 14th Lok Sabha”. “The committee,” he said, “had concluded that there was insufficient evidence to draw any conclusion of bribery.”
He added that the “government of India cannot confirm the veracity, contents, or even the existence of such communications”. “I may point out that many of the persons in those reports have stoutly denied the veracity of the contents.”