Three Coincidences: Chidambaram, SPK Group raids, AgustaWestland seem tied by a common thread
As Parliament gears up for a No Confidence motion on Friday, some interesting manoeuvrings behind the curtains were on, vis-à-vis various investigative agencies. As if on cue, the CBI filed its most awaited chargesheet against its prize catch — P Chidambaram.
Two days ago, another agency, the Income Tax department, carried out one of its biggest searches post-demonetisation and hauled in Rs 160 crore in cash and 100kg of gold from a Tamil Nadu-based construction company, allegedly close to the ADMK top brass. Coincidentally, on July 9, during a visit to the state, BJP chief Amit Shah had called Tamil Nadu one of the most corrupt states in the country.
It’s a different matter that the “corrupt Opposition” narrative was punctured by an India Today expose, hours ahead of the No Confidence motion. AgustaWestland arms dealer and accused Christian Michel’s sister and his lawyer dropped a bombshell — the arms dealer is allegedly being forced to sign a confession that he personally knew Sonia Gandhi. This would apparently let him off the hook.
But first, the Chidambarams: In sharp contrast to the CBI, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) chargesheet mentions neither the former finance minister, either as an accused or a witness, nor is there a mention of the FIPB officials having acquiesced to Karti Chidambaram — but the CBI by contrast has. The CBI naming FIPB officials and P Chidambaram has also exposed the fault lines within the two investigative agencies and its officials at loggerheads with each other.
The case against Chidambaram is that he gave FIPB clearance for an investment whereas it should have gone to the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs. Maxis bought 18 crore shares of Aircel at Rs 10 each and with the premium attached, the amount worked out to over Rs 3,200 crore, the CBI has said. Any investment above Rs 600 crore went to the CCEA pre-2010.
But has the CBI factored in government policy that allowed FIPB to consider investments pegged on the face value of the shares of the company, rather than the actual foreign investment coming in?
In the end, this will be the clinching factor that will decide the case either way.
Politically, that’s a nicety that isn’t coming in the way of a good debate though.
The chargesheet will give Prime Minister Narendra Modi a much-needed handle to attack the Opposition with. At rally after rally, the Prime Minister has said that the Congress top brass, including Sonia and Rahul Gandhi, are actually all out on bail and now, they are all being charge-sheeted one by one.
Cut to Tamil Nadu.
Amit Shah told party workers last week that Tamil Nadu is one of the most corrupt states in the country. Monday, the CBI raided the SPK Group whose promoter, Subramanian Palanisamy, as per the DMK, is a proxy of chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami. On Thursday, ADMK Parliamentary party leader P Venugopal was closeted in a meeting headed by Amit Shah in Parliament House. CBDT officials however said the raid and the No Confidence motion was a mere coincidence.
On AgustaWestland, the “government taking on a corrupt Opposition” narrative has been punctured by an India Today expose.
Christian Michel, with known links to the Gandhi family for two generations at least, may have been posturing before authorities, knowing that extraditing him was difficult and the evidence thin, but the expose couldn’t have come at a worse time.
Not that the government, with 273 MPs, needs a Shiv Sena or an ADMK where the halfway mark is 267, but then, it makes for good TV, having allies meekly behind, the Opposition fuming and caged parrots waiting in the wings.
Also Read: 'If Narendra Modi is serious, he should allow a no confidence motion': Jairam Ramesh