Transparency's our forte, Mallya & Nirav are UPA legacy: IT Minister Prasad

Minister backs note ban; On by-polls, says local factors at play, Centre's work will determine outcome in 2019

Asserting that the provision of a transparent government was the top achievement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government, Union IT and Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad listed the BJP-led administration's initiatives on the completion of 48 months at the Centre. 

Addressing the media in Hyderabad, Prasad maintained that the recent bank fraud cases and the bribery charges being framed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) were legacy problems left behind by the previous UPA government.

"All these instances reflect the dismal record of the UPA government. Whether it is Vijay Mallya or Nirav Modi and even the Air Asia case, it's all a legacy problem. We are only cleaning the dirt created by the previous government," the Minister said on being asked who would take responsibility for the recent bank frauds.

Prasad claimed transparency and doing the right thing have been the hallmark of the NDA Government, which has shunned the influence of brokers and middlemen on its decisions. 

"This (the BJP-led) government has de-registered 300,000 companies found engaged in illegal money laundering activities. We take action against those who perpetrate such activities while the previous government allowed them to carry on whatever they were doing," the Minister added.

The IT and Law Minister defended the demonetisation of high value currency notes in November 2016, saying that apart from helping detect persons and companies indulging in illegal activities, it has also helped identify the nature of money that came into the banking system.

Responding to a question on the steep rise in petroleum and diesel prices, the Minister said that the government was looking at the issue from a holistic and long-term perspective and a decision would soon be taken to address it accordingly.

On the setbacks faced by the ruling BJP in the by-elections in UP and Karnataka, Prasad said local factors play a role in by-elections while the Modi government's achievements would determine the outcome in the 2019 general polls.