Denying allegations of corruption levelled against him by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh on Thursday called it a 'political vendetta' and accused the party of attempting to 'frame him' in the matter.
"It's all political vendetta; I strongly deny it. I do not want to go into details as the matter is subjudiced in the Supreme Court. Everybody knows about my reputation, honesty and integrity, this is mud-slinging on part of BJP," said Singh.
"The BJP just wants to attack me because certain BJP chief ministers have been exposed. They are trying to hide their own shame by blaming others. I am totally innocent; an attempt is being made to frame me up, and I know that truth will prevail in the end," he added.
Meanwhile, the chief minister's office released a statement saying that Singh has submitted himself to a fair enquiry by an independent agency.
"Virbhadra Singh has submitted himself to a fair enquiry by an independent agency. A matter of record that earlier also BJP made false cases against Virbhadra Singh, on all occasions he came out clean. Virbhadra Singh has submitted himself to a fair enquiry by an independent agency," the statement said.
The BJP has accused Virbhadra Singh of taking bribe from an energy firm for giving it a 10-month extension. The party also accused Singh of evading tax.
The development comes a day after BJP levelled corruption charges on Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat.