Keep him out, say Cong., Left

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, OCT. 13. In a concerted move, the Opposition parties today sought to stall the return of Mr. George Fernandes to the Union Cabinet, by demanding that his return be kept in abeyance till the Venkataswami Commission completes its inquiry.

Reacting to reports on his possible re-induction, the Congress, the CPI(M) and the CPI denounced the `move' as a brazen violation of public conduct.

The Congress accused the Government of playing a `cruel joke' on the nation the same day the Venkataswami Commission had rejected the Samata Party's plea and had ruled that the Tehelka tapes were genuine. The Commission had conclusively established that bribes were received in the residence of Mr. Fernandes when he was Defence Minister, the party spokesperson, Mr. Jaipal Reddy, said and demanded that instead of reinstating Mr. Fernandes an FIR must be filed against him.

The Congress came down hard on the Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee, accusing him of ``shamelessly and openly surrendering to pressure'' from the allies. Its spokesperson, Mr. Jaipal Reddy, said that the induction of Mr. Fernandes would pose a serious challenge to the democratic system, besides being an insult to the Venkataswami Commission which was still conducting the probe.

The CPI(M) politburo joined in the criticism saying that Mr. Fernandes was being investigated by a judicial commission for charges of ``bribe-taking'', including an episode which took place in his house, involving the Samata Party chief at that time. The move ``was a brazen disregard for propriety and the Government's own stand that it would like to get to the bottom of the Tehelka tapes issue''. This would be another cynical blow to the public resolve to check corruption in high places,'' it said.

The CPI central secretariat too deplored the reported move. Any move to bring back Mr. Fernandes into the Cabinet would be against the assurance given by the Government to wait till the Commission cleared him.

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