Not me but Congress was involved in ''Oil for Food'' prog:Natwar

Lucknow, Feb 6 (UNI) Lambasting Congress-led UPA government at the Centre for playing into the hands of the United States, former External Affairs Minister Natwar Singh today said he had nothing to do with the 'Oil for Food' programme of the United Nations but Congress was certainly involved in it.

''...It was on the behest of America that the Congress leadership desired to indict me in the ''Oil for Food'' programme as my name had not figured in it till the Volker committee report,'' Mr Singh said here while speaking at a seminar on the 'Indian Foreign Policy on Iraq', organised by Ram Manohar Lohia Trust, an arm of the ruling Samajwadi Party (SP) in Uttar Pradesh.

The programme was also also attended by Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav and SP General Secretary Amar Singh.

Expressing total disillusionment with his old party, the former diplomat minced no words while stating that he was made a ''sacrificial goat'' in the whole affair. ''Neither me nor my son Jagat Singh has anything to do with it,'' he claimed.

Blaming the Pentagon for it, he said the US government wanted my name to be included in the Volcker committee report and the present regime of the Congress played party to it. ''In fact the Congress as a party was involved in it...and it made an escape route through me,'' Mr Singh alleged.

Mr Singh said it was ironical the Volcker committee report had been consigned to the dustbin in all the countries exept India.

''This is where the dubious character of the Congress party has come to the fore,'' he said.

Mr Singh, was issued notice from the Congress for his alleged involvement on the ''Oil for Food'' programme and subsequently, he had to resign from the Ministership. Since then, he had not kept his displeasure with his party a secret and has been openly charging that some persons withing the party wanted to keep him out and their interests matched with those of the US government.

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