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It wasn’t too long ago that the apex court had come down heavily on the premier investigating agency CBI accusing it of being a “caged parrot” who was answerable to its “political masters” – the CBI today closed a six-year- old disproportionate assets case against Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav (SP extends outside support to the UPA) citing ‘lack of evidence’. This step, which was formally announced by the CBI today is being interpreted in political circles as Congress led UPA’s largesse to the ruling SP party in Uttar Pradesh with an eye on 2014.
While on the one hand the UPA government prompted gesture helped the SP and its chief, the Congress party today lashed out at Akhilesh Yadav led SP government in UP for failing" to contain communal violence in Muzaffarnagar and demanded the young chief minister’s resignation.
Party sources said, “If the Congress at all decides on stitching up alliances in states, (although it has publicly stated that it would go alone) then it helps to keep options open instead of closing them.” Hence the closure of the long pending DA case by the CBI.
Throughout the last Parliament session, the SP had consistently stood by the UPA government when it needed to get crucial legislations like the Land bill and the Food Security bill passed, although it had initially differed with the government on several issues in these bills.
Nonetheless, the recent communal riots in western UP were too big a blot on the SP administration, with allegations abounding of SP and BJP conducting a ‘fixed match’. Both the AICC chief in charge of UP, Madhusudan Mistry and Union Minister Jairam Ramesh today lashed out at the SP government and its chief minister.
Mistry said, “Henious crime has been committed and SP government knows who was behind it. I am asking why the arrests have not been made. If he (Akhilesh Yadav) cannot fulfil his duty then he should not be in the post." He added, “As per the Constitution, the Chief Minister of the state has to protect the life and property of people. The SP government has failed in its duties. The Chief Minister has no right to continue on the post.”
Jairam Ramesh speaking to news agency PTI, "I am absolutely shocked, disappointed, angry at his (Akhilesh's) masterly inactivity on Muzaffarnagar. Cynical, absolutely cynical, what he has done," the Rural Development Minister said. "He is the government. He is the Chief Minister. Nobody from his government goes to Muzaffarnagar. No words of solace, no words of comfort, no acts of comfort."
