The BJP and the Shiv Sena on Thursday jointly demanded that the Prime Minister and Congress authorities should explain how they would account for the approximately `4 lakh crores loss caused by various scams that hit India in 2010.
The NDA, as part of their nation-wide campaign initiated in Delhi on December 22, will hold a public rally — Bhrastachar Virodhi Mahasangram Rally — at the Bandra-Kurla Complex in Mumbai on Sunday. BJP leaders such as Mr L.K. Advani, party president Nitin Gadkari, Ms Sushma Swaraj as well as Sena executive chief Uddhav Thackeray will address the rally.
“It is a step in our fight against the government which is not only involved in scams but also does nothing against the crooked ministers and others implicated in those scams. We demanded a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) inquiry, but the government refused to budge. Hence, we have decided to go to the people as a last resort,” said Manohar Joshi, senior Sena leader and former Speaker of the Lok-Sabha.
Mr Joshi added that history has always shown that when a government refuses to act despite the public demanding it to, its downfall is inevitable.
He pointed out that this had happened after the Emergency declared by Indira Gandhi and after the Ayodhya issue. “The demand for a JPC was not only that of political parties and leaders, but it was a public cry. In fact, the entire government should have taken responsibility for the scams and resigned,” Mr Joshi said.