New Delhi:
Holding up his wrists to solicit a pair of imaginary handcuffs, senior BJP leader LK Advani in Parliament dared the government to arrest him. Mr Advani said he was aware of a sting his party conducted in 2008 to expose the willingness of the government in 2008 to "purchase votes" to prove it was still in a majority. He has also said he will begin a new yatra (tour) across the country against corruption.
Mr Advani's protest provided a dramatic end to this session of parliament, and comes days after two of his partymen were arrested in what's known as the cash-for-votes scam. Faggan Singh Kulaste and Mahavir Bhagora were two of three BJP MPs who accepted a crore in July 2008, ahead of a trust vote for Dr Manmohan Singh. In return, they promised to abstain during the vote. The money was allegedly paid to them by politician Amar Singh, who was also arrested this week for criminal conspiracy.
"Whatever was done was done as per Constitutional norms. If anything was wrong I would have stopped them," said Mr Advani, referring to the actions of Mr Kulaste and Mr Bhagora. "If they are guilty, because I was Leader of the Opposition, so am I," he said . The third MP who was part of the cash-for-votes scam, Ashok Argal, is still serving his Lok Sabha term and cannot be arrested without the permission of the Speaker of the Lok Sabha.
Mr Advani's statement today suggests that he knew of his party's elaborate ruse . In July 2008, Sudheendra Kulkarni, an advisor to top BJP leaders, allegedly asked three BJP MPs to put themselves on the market ahead of the UPA's trust vote. The Left had pulled out of the government over India's civil nuclear deal with the US. Dr Singh had to prove his majority. Mr Kulkarni co-opted a private TV channel to film the negotiations as the trio of BJP MPs negotiated their deal with middlemen who represented Amar Singh. Mr Advani was reportedly kept informed of all developments.
On July 22, hours before the trust vote, the three BJP MPs arrived in the Lok Sabha brandishing wads of notes. They later said the deal struck with them was for three crores each; they just had to ensure they abstained during the vote.
The Delhi police have not specified why Amar Singh went out on a limb to help the UPA government. He was then a senior leader with the Samajwadi Party. The BJP has alleged that the real beneficiaries of the scam were Dr Manmohan Singh and UPA president Sonia Gandhi, and they must explain their role.
"Those who exposed this scam are in jail and those who were involved in it are posted as Prime Minister," said BJP leader Sushma Swaraj.
Mr Advani charged that those who voted for the government "through dishonesty by taking money are sitting here comfortably...but my two friends who honestly served the country are in jail."
The drama then moved outside the House as senior BJP leaders including Mr Advani, Rajnath Singh and Arun Jaitley held a protest at Mahatma Gandhi statue in the Parliament House Complex. They shouted slogans like "The Prime Minister should resign" and "this government of scams will not continue."
In the evening, the BJP skipped the tea hosted by the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Meira Kumar, a tradition on the last working day of every parliament session.
Its leaders were upset that Question Hour in both Houses had not been suspended to allow a discussion on the cash-for-votes controversy.