BJP beams Laloo’s ‘lies’; panel to probe case

Demanding Railway Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav’s ouster, BJP today accused him of misleading the Prime Minister and the country into bel...

Demanding Railway Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav’s ouster, BJP today accused him of misleading the Prime Minister and the country into believing that he was attacked on his visit to Gujarat by Bajranj Dal and VHP activists.

The party’s belligerent stance comes in the wake of the Gujarat government’s decision to order a judicial probe into the attack on Laloo. Justice N.B. Patel, a retired judge of the Gujarat High Court, will conduct the inquiry into the attack in Vadodara on Thursday, when Laloo had gone to meet the victims of the Sabarmati Express train mishap. The one-man panel will also probe if there was any security lapse during the entire episode, officials said, and will give its report in three months.

Reacting to the decision, Laloo said it was a tacit admission of Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s guilt in a desperate attempt to ‘‘hush up his misdeeds’’. But clearly the BJP, armed with video clippings to support their theory, was determined to come out in its defence of Modi. Party spokesperson Arun Jaitley said the footage showed that the car Laloo was travelling in was not damaged. ‘‘The rear windscreen of the minister’s car was intact,’’ he said.

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The BJP had collected the footage from five cameras stationed at the Vadodara hospital.

Gujarat Home Minister Amit Shah, who was also present at the press conference, said the enquiry committee constituted to look into the alleged attack on Laloo was asked to give its report within 90 days. CDs of the Railway Minister’s visit to the hospital were also circulated to the electronic media.

Asked whether this would be an issue in Parliament, Jaitley said: ‘‘Parliament will take note of it.’’

Describing Laloo’s claim as a ‘‘big lie and a big plot’’, Jaitley added that even the PM was misguided and he held a meeting of the CCPA late in the night on the matter. He said the clippings showed that on Laloo’s arrival at the hospital, slogans were raised in his favour and against him. Just as there were slogans for and against the Gujarat CM.

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Meanwhile, Justice Patel is yet to receive an appointment letter and the terms of reference. ‘‘I have not yet received my appointment letter and would like to comment only after receiving the terms of reference,’’ he said.

The Railway Police at Vadodara has already registered cases against some BJP workers for creating mischief at the hospital following Laloo’s allegations.

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