BJP charges PM with breach of parliamentary propriety

New Delhi, Jan 15 (PTI) In the wake of Supreme Courtquestioning the Government''s reluctance to disclose names ofIndians who allegedly stashed black money in foreign banks,BJP today charged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with breach ofparliamentary propriety by not keeping his promise made inRajya Sabha to get back the money.

"On July 30, 2009 Prime Minister Manmohan Singh hadcategorically told the Rajya Sabha that action has alreadystarted for getting back the money belonging to Indians fromSwiss Banks.... he should at least reveal the names of thesepeople. What is the difficulty in that," BJP spokespersonRajiv Pratap Rudy said.

He recalled the incident in the Rajya Sabha when thePrime Minister had "suo motu" intervened to refer to thestatement of the Finance Minister in his reply to the FinanceBill in the House and had stated that the Finance Minister hadspecifically dealt with this aspect and had said that actionhad already started.

"BJP would like the Prime Minister to clarify whether hechose to mislead the House by making a statement which hasbeen contradicted by the Supreme Court. It is a matter ofpropriety and also a matter of privilege of the House. The BJPwould want a straight answer from the Prime Minister," Rudysaid.

The senior BJP leader insisted that the Swiss Ambassadorhas categorically stated that there is no request from theIndian Government to reveal the names of those people whosemoney has been kept in Swiss Banks.

"The Prime Minister is quiet, the Government is quiet.

An absolute inaction in this regard makes the Manmohan Singhgovernment culpable... Here is a situation where thegovernment is overtly and covertly attempting to cover up theblack money," he alleged.

BJP alleged that soon after assuming office in 2009, thePrime Minister had said he will initiate action within 100days to recover Indian black money- estimated to be Rs onelakh crore - stashed abroad.

Rudy said the indictment of the UPA government by theSupreme Court is shocking and described the government''ssilence as "intriguing".

He observed that the Supreme Court has had to interveneon several issues during UPA regime, be it 2-G spectrum,Commonwealth Games, or Indian black money stashed abroad. PTIRC