Swamy moves EC seeking derecognition of Congress

Janata Party chief Subramanian Swamy filed a plea before the Election Commission of India on Saturday seeking derecognition of the Congress party for giving an unsecured loan of Rs 90 crore to Associated Journals.

The Congress admitted on Friday that the party had indeed made "interest-free loans from which no commercial profit has accrued to the Indian National Congress". The statement said, "The Indian National Congress has done its duty... to help initiate a process to bring the newspaper back to health in compliance with the law of the land."

Swamy had alleged that the Gandhis (Sonia Gandhi and Rahul) floated a private company Young Indians to acquire a public limited company Associated Journal, which published National Herald, for Rs. 50 lakh. The company they acquired, he said had property worth Rs 1600 crore in Delhi.

Swamy also alleged that the Congress gave an unsecured loan of Rs 90 crore to Associated Journals.

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Congress spokesperson P C Chacko on Friday challenged Swamy to prove allegations of wrongdoings against Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

He said, "We are now ready, the person (Swamy) who made this allegations should prove it. We have sent a letter from Rahulji's office and that amounts to legal notice."

"Swamy should have the guts to go to court. This is very strange, he wants us to file case against him...it is insensible. If there is a violation of rules, we challenge him to prove it. There is no commercial transaction here, people are trying to create confusion," he stressed.

Joining Swamy's battle with the Congress and the Nehru-Gandhi family, the Bharatiya Janata Party launched a blistering attack and demanded a clarification from the Congress regarding the allegations of fraud levelled by Swamy.

Addressing a press conference in Shimla, senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Arun Jaitley said the Congress leadership must explain the issue, and charged the Congress with violating provisions of the Representation of People's Act.

He also highlighted the Associated Journals board document produced by Swamy, which says that the All India Congress Committee gave them an unsecured loan of Rs 90 crore.

Jaitley termed it "grossest impropriety besides being a gross illegality. The country expects a fair answer from the Congress on Swamy's allegations."

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