Congress charge on elimination of 'fake' encounter accused condemned

New Delhi, May 8 (UNI) Taking strong exception to the Congress statement that the BJP and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi had hatched a ''sinister plan'' to eliminate Gujarat IPS officer Vanjara involved in 'fake encounter' case, the BJP said it showed the outlook and mental bankruptcy of the Congress party.

BJP Parliamentary Party Spokesman Vijay Kumar Malhotra said the statement of Congress spokesman Satyavrat Chaturvedi that the BJP was out to use a Muslim to kill the controversial fake encounter accused in judicial custody to create Hindu-Muslim to polarise the society on religious lines ahead of elections showed the thinking of the Congress party. "We strongly condemn this statement", he told after a meeting of customary BJP MPs meeting presided over by Leader of Opposition L K Advani.

Reacting to the trial court in Siwan, sentencing mafia don Shahabuddin with life imprisonment for kidnapping a CPI-ML activist, Mr Malhotra said the Parliament will have to take a view on all such cases including former Union Minister Shibu Soren involving MPs if the Courts will decide or the Parliament. "The BJP will raise the issue in the Speaker's All Party meeting", Mr Malhotra said. He reminded that the BJP had distanced itself from its MP Babubhai Katara as soon as his complicity in the human trafficking came to light. "There should be a common yardstick for all such cases", he said.

Touching upon reports of Chinese incursions 20 km deep inside Indian territory in Arunachal Pradesh, Mr Malhotra said it was time for the Government to clarify the position to the Parliament and to the country at a time when it is holding talks to resolve border issues with its northern neighbour.

UNI