Modhwadia’s anti-Modi slur on CEO office radar

“We have also taken suo motu cognizance of the Congress leader’s statement (on Modi’s Switzerland visit) from newspaper reports,” state CEO Anita Karwal told Newsline on Saturday. Responding to the complaint by BJP leader Parendu Bhagat,the office of the state CEO has asked the Ahmedabad district election officer (DEO) to inquire into it and send a detailed report on this to the CEO,Karwal said.

The CEO said her office would inform the Election Commission of India (EC) about this “only after receiving a report from the Ahmedabad DEO and duly examining its contents”. When contacted,Ahmedabad DEO Hareet Shukla said,“I am yet to receive instructions,if any,from the office of the CEO to inquire into the BJP complaint.”

In his complaint,Bhagat,a close aide of Modi,said that the remarks made by Modhwadia amounted to demeaning the “honesty and integrity” of the Chief Minister and his character assassination and that it is a clear case of violation of the Model Code of Conduct. The allegation by the Congress leader that the CM had facilitated the investment of black money of industrialists (in Swiss bank accounts) was baseless,said Bhagat.

On Friday,Modhwadia had asked Modi to come out with a ‘white paper’ on his foreign visit,including the one to Switzerland along with the state’s industrialists,in August 2007. While talking to mediapersons,the Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee spokesman had also raised a question if Modi had been to Switzerland to facilitate the investment of black money of industrialists and money embezzled from the Sujalam-Sufalam water project.

Modhwadia said on Saturday: “I have only raised some specific questions on Modi’s visit to Switzerland. I have not levelled any allegations against him. Even in August 2007,I had questioned if Modi’s visit to Switzerland along with 20 industrialists was justified.”

Modhwadia further said that he stands by what he had told the media about Modi’s visit.