Facing sharp criticism from the Opposition for appointing P J Thomas as the central vigilance commissioner (CVC), Home Minister P Chidambaram today defended the decision of the government and said the same agency that selected him had earlier granted him “vigilance clearance”.
Thomas is allegedly involved in a palm oil imports scam from the 1990s.
Chidambaram acknowledged that during a meeting of the high-powered committee to select a CVC, the palmolein case was discussed in detail. And, that there were differences in the opinions of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj and himself.
“While discussing the names before the panel, for the bulk of the time there were discussions regarding P J Thomas and the palmolein case. Swaraj and the other members of the committee had made their points,” Chidambaram told reporters. He also said he was reluctant to answer the question because the case was in court.
Soon after the government appointed Thomas as the CVC, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and other political parties have been demanding his removal because of his alleged role in the scam.
The home minister said cases being heard in courts of law were being widely discussed by politicians and the media. “I am disappointed that the courts are not pulling up people,” he added.
Senior BJP leaders have accused the PM of being adamant on proposing the name of Thomas because the government knew corruption cases relating to the 2G spectrum allocation and the Commonwealth Games would be investigated by CVC.
Swaraj has threatened to file an affidavit in the Supreme Court after the government informed the apex court that papers and files on Thomas were not circulated to the members of the committee at the time of his appointment.
Further defending the government and Thomas, Chidambaram said neither the NDA government from December 1999 to May 2004, nor the UPA government had given prosecution sanction against Thomas in the palmolein case.
