Congress fires first retaliatory salvo at Shekhawat

New Delhi, July 6: In its first public offensive against the rival Presidential candidate, the Congress Party today alleged that Vice-President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat had joined the British Police in 1942 when the entire country was fighting for freedom under the Quit India Movement.

Firing the first retaliatory salvo at the NDA-backed Independent candidate, AICC Spokesman Abishek Manu Singhvi dismissed the suggestion that the Congress Party was "demeaning" the presidential campaign by dragging Mr Shekhawat, who holds the second highest constitutional post, into public debate.

''I am not levelling any allegation against Mr Shekhawat. In fact, these allegations are already in the public domain,'' he said, pointing out that Mr Shekhawat had resigned from the British police a year after India got freedom.

In this context, he said the BJP had reduced the presidential debate to the lowest level from the day one after the announcement of the candidature of UPA-Left nominee Pratibha Patil for the July 19 Presidential election.

''While the allegations against Mr Shekhawat demonstrates his direct involvement, none of the allegations levelled against Ms Patil had her direct role. All the allegations were about her associates,'' Dr Singhvi said.

He asked the managers of the poll campaign of Mr Shekhawat to answer many questions about the Vice-President that were available in the public domain.

Referring to a recent allegation that Ms Patil had used her MP's Local Area Development Fund to help a society run by her husband, Dr Singhvi said this was also raised as part of the ongoing "mudslinging" at Ms Patil. He said Ms Patil had, in fact, alloted a portion of her MPLAD fund in 1996 to construct a sports complex on a land adjacent to the society. However, the fund could not be utilised as one NGO had gone to a Nagpur court challenging the use of the land for sports complex. The NGO contended that the land was originally allotted to it.

Since the litigation was pending for long in court, the amount was not yet disbursed nor the land utilised. The land was still with the government, he maintained.

Moreover, it is the responsibility of the District collector and not the MP to decide as to which scheme is eligible.

Replying to a question, Dr Singhvi said there was overwhelming response to Ms Patil in states where she had already visited. She launched her campaign in Kerala yesterday.

After winding up her tour in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh today, she will go to Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana and Punjab tomorrow. Ms Patil will address the electoral college in Delhi on July eight.

UNI