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Journalism of Courage
CHENNAI, April 5: The dismissal of the DMK government under Article 356 is a national patriotic duty of the Atal Behari Vajpayee government and Jayalalitha’s call for the dismissal a patriotic act, Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy said on Sunday.
Addressing a press conference, he said that the dismissal was the demand of the Tamil people, but Vajpayee had not understood the gravity of the situation.
He alleged that the DMK government had abetted the ISI-Al Umma nexus in Coimbatore disregarding the Centre’s early warning.
Responding to a point that Telugu Desam Party leader and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu might not support the dismissal of the DMK government, he said "let Chandrababu Naidu not support the move. I have not asked for his help. But my efforts to get the government dismissed will continue".
He alleged that State Police’s Q Branch was not cooperating with the military intelligence in locating petrol bunks and warehouses in Tamil Nadu used for smuggling diesel,petrol and medicines to the LTTE.
Swamy also said that Vajpayee should not defend the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) or call them "patriotic" since it was outside the scope of the Front’s national agenda. Defending the RSS would imply that there was a hidden agenda which Vajpayee had earlier denied. This would erode the authority of the office of the PM.
Swamy expressed surprise at the somersault that the Jain Commission had taken since November when the interim report was published, and said that the panel report should be handed over to a Supreme Court judge and proper action should be taken.
Also, referring to Moopanar’s comment about the so-called explosive details related to the report, he demanded that the Tamil Maanila Congress leader come out with it since he was not bound by any secrecy act.
Swamy threatened to file a PIL if the government failed to act on the Enforcement Directorate’s application for permission to serve a show cause notice to Urban Development Minister and veteranlawyer Ram Jethmalani for violations of Section 8(1) of the FERA. Jethmalani, he pointed out, had confessed in a Mumbai Metropolitan Magistrate Court that he had received $200,000 without the permission of the government nor did he report the receipt after his return to India.
"If the government did not act on this report or did not permit the ED from proceeding according to law, I shall file a PIL seeking the Court’s direction", he said.
Again, Swamy defended his cases against now ally Jayalalitha saying it was based on prima facie evidence. He said, "My job was over after I brought it to the attention of the Court. It was my duty as an Opposition leader". He said that it was to Jayalalitha’s credit that she had never raised the subject with him.
