Steering clear of the allegations that the BJP government at the Centre was using central agencies to target political opponents like P Chidambaram, DK Shivakumar among others, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said that FIRs in several of the cases in question were lodged during the UPA rule.
The BJP president, in an exclusive interview to News18 Network Group Editor-in-Chief Rahul Joshi, said, “If anyone feels wronged, the investigations could be challenged in the court. If it was a political vendetta, why would we take six years to make these arrests?”
When asked if the government in power was using central agencies like the CBI and ED to silence the opposition, Shah pointed out that a lot of FIRs against leaders were in fact, filed under the UPA government. “We are simply investigating the matter and the agencies are performing their duties” he said.
Accusing the Congress leaders of having double standards on corruption, Shah claimed several of their leaders deliver speeches daring agencies to arrest them for corruption, but create drama when they are actually brought under the scanner.
He further clarified that the crackdown on top opposition leaders has nothing to do with the upcoming elections. “There were no elections when Chidambaram and Shivakumar were arrested,” Shah said.
“The CBI and ED are fulfilling their responsibilities independently, they are not under the purview of the home ministry. When an FIR was filed against me, I approached the High Court and they let me walk out freely because they said there was no prima facie evidence against me. Later, the Supreme Court also observed that it was a clear case of political vendetta,” Shah said.
When asked to comment on whether he believed that investigating agencies could be used for political vendetta, Shah replied, “Only if they want to.”
"The court is open for everyone, anyone who feels they have been wronged is free to approach it,” he added.
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