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Karnataka
"Stamp paper scam may be part of Osama's operations"
By Our Staff Reporter
BANGALORE, JAN. 24. Basavaraj Bommai of the JD-S said in Legislative Council on Thursday that the stamp paper racket might have been part of the operations carried out by the Saudi fugitive, Osama bin Laden, to distabilise the Indian economy.
Participating in the debate on the racket, Mr. Bommai recalled that the Saudi fugitive had, after the destruction of the World Trade Center, said that the U.S. was trying to control the world using its economic might, and that the attacks were intended to demolish its ``economic arrogance''.
Mr. Bommai said bin Laden's strategy contained a plan to target India by weakening its economy by circulating fake currency notes of the denominations of Rs. 1,000 and Rs. 500. However, it had no effect due to the steps taken by the Reserve Bank of India. Following this, Bin Laden might have resorted to circulation of fake stamp papers, he added.
He said that the conspiracy dated back to 15 years when an Iranian citizen printed and circulated U.S. dollars in Dharwad before being apprehended.
Mr. Bommai criticised the Chief Minister, S.M. Krishna, and the Home Minister, Mallikarjun Kharge, for not entrusting the investigation of the racket to the CBI.
The Government's stand on the investigation it would order in the case was ``wavering'', he said. The Government, which initially contemplated investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation, was said to be thinking of entrusting the probe to the Bangalore City Crime Branch. It should make its stand known, he added.
He wanted to know from the Government what measures it had initiated to ensure that the racket in fake stamp papers did not continue. After sales tax and excise, it was stamp duty that earned the Government the maximum revenue, and it was the Government's responsibility to ensure that only genuine stamp papers were in circulation.
D.H. Shankara Murthy, BJP floor leader, asked why the Tourism Minister, R. Roshan Baig, who had denied involvement in the racket, had visited Mumbai 15 times in the past 18 months.
He said Mr. Baig had made international calls from the hotel where he stayed. Details of the persons he spoke to and the discussions should be made public, he demanded.
Mr. Murthy, who demanded the resignation of the minister, said police could not interrogate him while he was a minister. The members of the House would be forced to conclude that the Government was trying to hush up the case if it did not hand over the investigation to the CBI, he added.
M.P. Nada Gowda (JD-U) said that the Government should have filed a defamation suit against the State unit of the BJP for publishing a booklet on the racket indicting the Government and alleging that a minister was involved.
P. Ramiah (nominated) sought a comprehensive investigation into the fake stamp paper racket as it had wide ramifications involving other States.
Protection for informer: The Home Minister, Mallikarjun Kharge, informed the House that the Government was providing protection to the person who had given leads to police on the stamp paper racket.
The minister reserved his reply to the discussion for Monday when the House will meet again.
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