By IANS,
Mandi (Himachal Pradesh): Taking a dig at the central government, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L.K. Advani Wednesday said here that securing the vote of confidence in 2008 in parliament and the 2G spectrum scam were a national shame.
“The cash-for-votes in parliament and the Rs.1.76 lakh crore 2G scam are a national shame. Cash deposits worth Rs.25 lakh crore have been deposited by Indian nationals in foreign banks,” Advani said at a public gathering here as part of his nationwide rally against corruption.
He said his party had demanded that the money deposited in banks abroad be returned to India. “It could change the entire economy of the country but the central government has no will to act in this regard,” he said.
The cash-for-votes scam had disrupted the proceedings of the Lok Sabha in 2008 when the BJP members alleged that the central government, led by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, had tried to bribe them so that they cast their vote in favour of the ruling government.
The BJP leader said former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had envisioned a programme to interlink 130 rivers in the country that could revolutionise the farm sector.
“The project was estimated to cost Rs.10 lakh crore and it could have been met from the unaccounted money deposited in Swiss banks,” he added.
Arun Jaitley, opposition leader in the Rajya Sabha, criticised the central government for high inflation and for favouring multinational companies.
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said a citizens’ charter has been brought to ensure that government services are provided to the people in a time-bound manner.