BJP leader’s sentence has taken the sting out of BJP’s attack on Congress over Bofors.
A sessions court in Delhi handed out a tough sentence to former BJP president Bangaru Laxman, who had been caught on tape accepting bribe in a sting operation done almost a decade ago. The sentence immediately triggered off a war of words between the Congress and the BJP, with both parties accusing each other of corruption.
The judge came down severely on the septuagenarian tainted leader saying that this “sab chalta hai” attitude would have to be dispensed with. There was a strong plea from Laxman’s lawyers that the aging leader who is also suffering from various ailments be treated leniently. They pleaded for a maximum of six month sentence.
But the judge had decided to set an example. Not only did he hand down a sentence of four years’ imprisonment to the veteran leader but he also asked him to cough up a fine of Rs1 lakh. Laxman was sent off to Tihar Jail where he will have to cool his heels till his lawyers plead for his bail in the High Court. It is learnt from the disappointed lawyers of the former party boss that they would move a higher court of appeal next week itself.
From Friday, when the leader was convicted, the BJP had been gradually distancing itself from Laxman, arguing that he had been fighting his own case and that the party had not been in touch with him for a long time. On Saturday, the BJP said that the amount for which Laxman had been punished — the sum of Rs 1 lakh — was a pittance compared to the major scams like the 2G and the CWG in which UPA leaders were involved.
BJP’s Shahnawaz Hussain said the BJP was committed to fighting corruption. He recalled that the decision to remove Laxman as party president was taken immediately after the bribery allegations. Hussain’s colleague, Ravi Shankar Prasad accused the government of preventing a fair investigation into several cases corruptions, including alleged kickbacks to Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrochhi in the Bofors gun deal.
Congress spokesperson Rashid Alvi said this was the first time that the national president of a national party had been found guilty and punished by a court. Alvi added: “It is proper time for the BJP to do self-analysis, to rethink about its organisation.”
Interestingly, Laxman’s conviction and subsequent sentencing closely followed the debate over the Bofors controversy and to some extent took the sting away from the BJP onslaught.
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