Left parties slam govt on Quattrocchi issue

Left parties on Tuesday slammed the UPA government on the issue of dropping the name of Bofors payoff scam accused Ottavio Quattrocchi from the Red Corner notice list, saying it was the "latest episode of misuse" of CBI for serving Congress' "political interests".

CPI national secretary D Raja said that it is up to the government and the CBI to explain its position on the matter which has generated "a lot of controversy".

"The role of CBI is questioned in a number of instances. It is now for the government and the CBI to explain the position," Raja said from Chennai.

Terming it as the "latest episode in the misuse of CBI for the political interests of the Congress", Forward Bloc national secretary D Deverajan said that it has "revealed the ugly face" of Congress.

"It clearly indicates that the Congress has done something wrong in Bofors case and Quattrocchi is a major player in it," Deverajan, who is campaigning in Kolkata, said.

Similar views were expressed by senior RSP leader Abani Roy, who said that it was "not the first incident" of misuse of CBI by the Congress.

"Such misuse of CBI is growing. Sometimes chargesheets are not filed, sometimes they do not investigate properly. There are delays in many ways. There is foul play," he said.