Mathrani revelations spell trouble for Natwar

K Natwar Singh's stock dipped to dangerously low levels today after Indian Ambassador to Croatia Aniel Mathrani's claims involving him in the Iraqi oil-for-food programme were published by a newsmagazine.

Mathrani, later in the day, told a news channel that he had not given an interview to the magazine.

On his part, Singh termed the claims outrageous and malicious. "I have read Mathrani's outrageous allegations against the Congress party and myself in the latest issue of India Today. These are totally false and malicious. I shall consult my lawyer for further action," he said in a statement here.

Singh said he was ready to face any time-bound inquiry on the issue so that his name was cleared at the earliest.

"The obvious question to ask is why did Mr Mathrani give this interview at this time. If he was so concerned about the matter, why did he not go public earlier? He (Mathrani) was in Delhi when the Volcker report controversy came up," Singh added.

However, the Congress went into an overdrive today, not just for a damage-limitation exercise, but also to put Mathrani's statement in perspective.

Although several Congressmen pooh-poohed Mathrani's "revelations" and said his statements had not made public any fresh information in the case, privately the leaders conceded that handling the Volcker report issue was becoming more and more damaging for the party.

"Neither Sonia Gandhi nor the Congress party have been named by Mathrani. And there is an enquiry on against Singh who has resigned," said Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Kapil Sibal when asked if Singh would be made the sacrificial lamb. However, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee was more forthright.

"Resignations are purely voluntary. You can't force anyone to resign," he said.

Another Congress leader said that the party had no choice because Singh had conveyed that he was unwilling to resign and let it be known that if he did so, he would take several people down with him.

"The party is now following a policy through which a differentiation is being made between the defence of the Congress party and an individual like Singh. If the government is unable to sack Singh, the policy will be to buy time and hope the controversy will die down on its own," the leader said.