Sheila Dixit plays slander campaign

Sujay Mehdudia

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, NOV. 28.

Accusing her opponents, mainly the BJP, of launching a slander campaign and levelling wild allegations, the Delhi Chief Minister, Ms Sheila Dixit, today challenged them to prove that any wrong had been committed in the allotment of contract by the Delhi Jal Board for the Sonia Vihar Water Treatment Plant in East Delhi.

Replying to the discussion in the Delhi Assembly on irregularities in the allotment of contract for the water treatment plant initiated by the Leader of the Opposition, Prof. Jagdish Mukhi, she said her Government was ready to have a re- look at the allotment of work for contract to the French company -- M/s Degremont SA -- if it was proved that technical and financial bids were wrongly evaluated or errors committed. Lashing out at the BJP and her own party MLA, Mr. Jagdish Anand, for such malicious campaign without checking facts, Ms. Dixit said the BJP had throughout the session come up with excuses and evaded listening to reply to the charges.

Ms. Dixit said the issue was being politicised for no reason by the BJP and her party opponents. ``But the truth is that a whole lot of influence was applied for favouring certain companies by the BJP and also her own partymen. But we firmly went by the report of the private consultants and the pattern set by the World Bank and consultants was followed. The idea was to get the state-of-the-art technology for execution of the project which was very vital for Delhi.

Making an indirect reference to her party MLAs, Mr. Jaspal Singh and Mr. Ashok Singh, who had been listed in the discussion but remained absent, from the House when it was taken up, the Chief Minister said at no time did she, as Chairperson of the Delhi Jal Board, interfere in the process of allotment of tenders. Stating that her Government was transparent, she laid all papers regarding the allotment of contract on the table of the House.

Ridiculing the claim of Prof. Jagdish Mukhi, that the Government had suffered a loss of Rs. 43 crores on account of wrong award, the Chief Minister said in fact the bids of the other company --M/s Vat Tech Wabag -- who was also in the race, were Rs. 192.35 crores higher than the company which was allotted the contract. Not only this, as claimed by Prof. Mukhi that a 10 per cent advance was paid to the French company, Ms. Dixit said no such money has been paid.

The committee which evaluated the bids was headed by the Secretary Planning, Mr. Vivek Rae, a person of integrity and has no contact or interest in the Delhi Jal Board. ``Nobody wants to know the truth. All of them want to launch a character assassination campaign and hurl accusations. I am ready to give them all the papers if the Opposition and my own partymen want to satisfy themselves,'' she declared.

Referring to the allotment of contract for the Wazirabad water treatment plant to another French company -- Vivendi -- the Chief Minister said the study was being conducted by the company free. ``A decision was taken by the entire Cabinet and not me single- handedly. If the proposal suits us, we will carry on with it otherwise we will pay them their money and hire somebody else'', she stated.

Just before the Chief Minister began her reply, BJP members walked out in protest against the shouting down of Mr. Jagdish Anand, by the treasurey benches. The walk-out was preceded by heated arguments between the Speaker, Chaudhary Prem Singh, and BJP members.

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