Congress today accused the BJP and Narendra Modi government of running a "sinister campaign" against national icons as it dubbed reports of snooping on the family of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose as motivated news plants based on selective leaks.
"News reports suggesting snooping of family of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose are motivated news plants based on selective and mischievous leaks.
"BJP and government are running a sinister campaign of innuendos, insinuations and selective leaks aimed at maligning national icons and our founding fathers including Jawahar Lal Nehru, Vallabbhai Patel, Lal Bahadur Shastri and Govind Ballabh Pant," Congress leader Anand Sharma said here.
He alleged that motivated "half truths and untruths" are being floated in the media by the Modi government with the sole aim of diverting the attention of people of India from miserable performance, betrayal of mandate and failed promises of the Prime Minister whose government is completing first year in power next month.
He claimed that as "selective leaks" of Bose's family being snooped upon by Intelligence Bureau between 1948-68 at the behest of Nehru have fallen flat, BJP is planting another "mischievous but contradictory" story about snooping resulting on account of Nehru writing to the then Foreign Secretary inquiring about the visit of Netaji's nephew Amiya to Tokyo.
"While this news plant on one hand contradicts the earlier media story of IB surveillance, one is forced to wonder as to how and why an inquiry by a Prime Minister - in most transparent manner and vide written note sent through the proper channel of Foreign Secretary and Ambassador - about a close associate of a family can be construed as snooping or espionage," he wondered in a statement.
