National

Congress dossier to clear Pratibha’s name

Special Correspondent

Documents will be shared with UPA constituents and Left parties supporting her candidature

NEW DELHI: The Congress has stepped up efforts to counter the propaganda against its presidential candidate Pratibha Patil by putting together a dossier of documents that “clear her name” in each of the charges that are being brought up against her by the Opposition.

Disclosing some of the documents in his possession, Ms. Patil’s official representative and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Priyaranjan Dasmunsi said on Thursday that the documents would be shared with other constituents of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and Left parties supporting her candidature.

About allegations relating to her association with Pratibha Mahila Sahakari Bank, Mr. Dasmunsi said she was its chairperson only for a month and eight days from March 16, 1990, to April 24, 1990, and no loans were sanctioned by her during the period.

As for the loans taken by three of her relatives which are alleged to have been waived, Mr. Dasmunsi said they had been paid back. And, according to him, Kavita Arvind Patil — one of the three borrowers — was not a relative of Ms. Patil. Her niece Anjali D. Patil borrowed Rs. 7.5 lakh from Pratibha Bank on September 27, 1990, and paid back Rs. 15,79,454 as principal and interest on June 30, 1999.

Similarly, Congress has proof to show that the presidential candidate’s sister-in-law Rajkaur D. Patil also paid back her loan.

Referring to the charge that a college run by a trust set up by Ms. Patil’s family had misappropriated funds collected for Tsunami, Mr. Dasmunsi furnished a letter from the principal of the College of Engineering and Technology, Jalgaon, citing the receipt number for the money that was paid to the Collector of the district to be forwarded to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund.

About the slew of charges that are being brought up against the UPA-Left candidate, Mr. Dasmunsi said: “The Opposition is trying to provoke us into turning this into a U.S. presidential election. They are frustrated because they had hoped to divide the UPA-Left on the presidential election. First they attacked her for lack of stature and now they trying to show her as tainted.”

To a question on rumours that the UPA-Left was considering a change in candidate, Mr. Dasmunsi, denying any such move, said in return:

“I have heard a rumour that Bharatiya Janata Party leader Sushma Swaraj is being considered by the Opposition as its ‘independent” candidate Bhairon Singh Shekhawat is upset by the defections in the National Democratic Alliance.”

Again, when asked to comment on speculation that UPA members would respond positively to Leader of the Opposition, L. K. Advani’s call for a “conscience vote”, Mr. Dasmunsi said in response: “Many pro-Vasundhara Raje legislators and anti-Narendra Modi legislators have sent us feelers that they would vote for Ms. Patil.”

The Congress accused the BJP of attacking the sanctity of Presidential election and subverting the process by seeking to turn it into direct poll, as against the Constitutional system of indirect election. “Ours is not a direct election and the concept of people electing President is Constitutional bunkum. We have a Parliamentary system in which the President holds a ceremonial post. MPs and MLAs form the electoral college … the very sanctity of elections is sought to be destroyed,” party spokesperson Devendra Nath Dwivedi.

Mr. Dwivedi said the decision of the BJP to convert the mode of elections and campaign into personalised attack was part of a well calculated strategy and nothing to do with probity in public life.

The BJP, he said, “which is facing internal trouble” was trying to revive itself through this campaign.

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