Burari, Delhi:
Sonia Gandhi has declared that her party "will take corruption head-on and demonstrate through actions and not words alone that we mean what we say."
The Congress president's closing remarks at the plenary session in Burari today followed the same line that she launched on Sunday when she declared a five-point agenda that the Congress will follow in tackling corruption.
Mrs Gandhi took another swipe at the BJP- her second during this conclave- and said, "I can say with pride that we have simply no reason to have any doubt on our record... our record stands out especially when we compare it to the record of the NDA... to what they achieved during their time. It is our duty to counter the accusations that are blatantly baseless, unfounded... being leveled by the Opposition particularly by the BJP."
Earlier today, the Prime Minister addressed the session and promised to implement the anti-corruption measures suggested by Mrs Gandhi. They include exploring the possibility of fast-track courts for public officials accused of corruption.
The Congress' strategy is clearly to appropriate the anti-corruption mantra that has so far been brandished by the Opposition, which accuses the government of being tolerant of corruption. The Opposition's attack this winter has been fuelled by a trio of scams - the Adarsh society scam, the financial crimes of those who organized the Commonwealth Games, and the Godzilla of all scams in India, the 2G scam.
The government's auditor has price-tagged the 2G scam at Rs 1.76 lakh crore. It blames A Raja for undervaluing 2G spectrum in 2008 to help companies that he favoured. Raja resigned as Telecom Minister last month, but the Opposition says the real blame for the scam lies with the government, which allowed Raja to subvert the system.
"I have nothing to hide," said the PM today, offering to appear before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which is studying the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG). That didn't impress the BJP, which said the PM cannot pick which forum he wants to appear at. The Opposition, led by the BJP, says the government has to sanction a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to investigate the different scams that the country is confronting now.
Both the PM and Sonia Gandhi have pointed out that while they sacked ministers on the basis of allegations of corruption, the BJP has allowed its chief minister in Karnataka to stay in office even as he's being investigated for a series of land scams.
The Congress has a BJP phobia, said Arun Jaitley today, adding that the Congress seemed to focus more on the BJP than its own issues during its plenary gathering.