Have done nothing wrong,says Kalmadi

There was no official reason given for Sibal’s failure to attend the programme,but sources said the union minister made the excuse of an illness to avoid sharing the dias with Kalmadi,who has been placed under suspension by the Congress.

Kalmadi made claims of his contribution to society and said he would come out clean of the 2010 Commonwealth Games scam. “I have done nothing wrong. Everything will be clear in the next 2-3 months,” Kalmadi added.

He said he took the city to the international level by organising cultural events like the Pune festival,international film festival,marathon and commonwealth youth games. The balewadi stadium was constructed and development work under the JNNURM scheme was held during his tenure,Kalmadi said,urging citizens to continue to support him in taking the city to newer heights.

Though Bhujbal did not openly make any statement in favour of Kalmadi,he said the Pune festival had taken the city to an international level. “It is not easy to organise such an event for 25 years consecutively. One should not stop because of the hurdles,” he said.

While praising Kalmadi,Patil said his (Kalmadi) initiatives for the city were note-worthy.

Kalmadi had recently indicated that he would become active in politics and contest the Lok Sabha polls next year.