Fwd: [bangla-vision] Looting of National Wealth

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Prathiba Sundaram <prathibasam@yahoo.com>
Date: Fri, Sep 3, 2010 at 11:10 AM
Subject: [bangla-vision] Looting of National Wealth
To: z bangla-vision <bangla-vision@yahoogroups.com>, thejasknr@yahoogroups.com, c_b_i@yahoogroups.co.in, msf kerala <msfkerala@yahoogroups.com>, AICC Congress <aicc@congress.org.in>, Manmohan Singh <manmohan@sansad.nic.in>

 

Former federal law minister Ram Jethmalani yesterday alleged several leaders of the ruling Congress Party had illegal funds stashed in foreign tax havens. The Rajya Sabha MP of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said that huge amounts of money stolen by criminal offenders from the pockets of poor people of India were hidden in foreign banks. "It is increasingly certain that bigwigs of the Congress are involved in these grave crimes, including (party chief) Sonia Gandhi and her son (Rahul)," Jethmalani alleged. He said that the latest protocol with the Swiss government was a further attempt to blockade the acquisition of information about these highly influential criminals. "The protocol does not even make sense. The double taxation treaty has nothing to do with the present situation," Jethmalani said. India said on Tuesday a tax pact signed with Switzerland should help the government track illicit funds parked in Swiss bank accounts. But Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said the measure would not be retroactive. "The new provision will be applicable only for prospective information and not for past information," Mukherjee said. During the last election campaign in 2008, the BJP made uncovering so-called "black money" or illicit funds one of its main campaign planks. While there is no official calculation, Indian estimates put the amount of illegal money stashed away in tax havens overseas at $140bn or higher. Earlier in the year, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh promised that India would take every possible measure to ensure the return of illegal funds stashed in foreign tax havens. Jethmalani, an eminent jurist and legal expert, also criticised the government over the Bhopal gas disaster and said no responsible or satisfactory answers have been given by the government, including on important questions. "Who settled the suit claim of $3.3bn for a meagre amount of $470mn, less than 1/7th of the amount claimed? No one has yet denied that, according to the Union Carbide, they have paid more money under the table outside the settlement," he alleged. He claimed this "unholy deal" took place between a friend of former prime minister and husband of Sonia Gandhi) Rajiv Gandhi and a Union Carbide representative, but no information is forthcoming about with whom, where and how the settlement took place. Referring to the growing crisis in Jammu and Kashmir,  Jethmalani demanded the arrest of separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani. He accused Geelani of being "an intentional abettor of murder" who is on Pakistan's payroll and responsible for the current imbroglio in Kashmir. Jethmalani said the youth indulging in violence are instigated by people "in the pay of Pakistan of whom Geelani is the leader." "I will apologise to him if he swears by the Holy Qur'an that he has not been on the payroll of Pakistan at all relevant times. He is not a genuine friend of Kashmir but is its mortal enemy," Jethmalani said. Jethmalani also hit out at Home Minister P Chidambaram for what he termed his "inept handling of the Kashmir problem." "It is unfortunate that Chidambaram, who has no clue of what is to be done, is handling it (Kashmir)," he said. IANS

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Palash Biswas
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