Wednesday, November 9 2005 20:20 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Terming as 'outrageous' Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's assertion that the Volcker Committee had made 'unsubstantiated references', Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today (Nov 9, 2005) trained its guns on Congress President Sonia Gandhi demanding that she be removed as Chairperson of National Advisory Council.

"In one breath the Prime Minister acts though half-heartedly against Natwar Singh but refuses to act against Gandhi who also occupies a Government post. The Government cannot have different yardsticks for different persons.

"The Congress party's name appears in the Volcker Report as that of Sonia Gandhi. She also occupies a Government post and as such she should also be removed from that post", party spokesman Prakash Javadekar told reporters here.

Taking strong exception to Prime Minister's statement in Patna yesterday (Nov 8, 2005)maintaining that there was no evidence to support the 'unsubstantiated references' in the Volcker Committee findings, he said," We condemn his effort to prejudge and influence the probe he ordered.

The Prime Minister is defending the indefensible. He has become the prosecutor, the defender and the judge by himself".

Alleging that the Prime Minister's statement showed that he succumbed to new pressures every day and flounders while saving his party and colleagues, Javadekar said, "The repeated defense of corruption by the Prime Minister makes mockery of any probe, which is yet to start. BJP feels nobody should jeopardize the probe in such a brazen way".

"If the Prime Minister cannot withstand pressures from his party and Natwar Singh, how will he be able to withstand the pressure of world powers to protect national interests", the BJP spokesman said.

Javadekar said BJP's fears about the ability of the two probes ordered by the Government to obtain official documents from various countries were coming true as was evident from the reported statements of UN spokesperson Farhan Haq that the Volcker Committee was unlikely to share information to any private association or political party.

"The two Committees will become ineffective unless the due process of law is followed. The only course for getting the relevant documents from all over the world is to file a criminal complaint against the accused and move forward under the provisions of 166A and B of Criminal Procedure Code", he said.