Pranab Mukherjee defends government on WikiLeaks

Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday said the present government at the centre is not accountable to the 14th Lok Sabha, as he faced the clamour for resignation of the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) regime over the latest WikiLeaks expose that MPs were bought for cash to the save the then government in 2008 during the Indo-US nuclear deal.

While the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said the government must resign immediately and accused the government of committing moral and political sin, Pranab Mukherjee said: “What happened in 14th Lok Sabha cannot be dragged to the 15th Lok Sabha. The government of the day is not accountable to 14th Lok Sabha but the 15th Lok Sabha.”

The set of communiqu?s, or cables, between U.S. diplomatic officials — accessed by The Hindu daily — show that they were assured by Nachiketa Kapur, an alleged aide of Congress leader Satish Sharma, that the party had gathered about Rs 50-60 crores to buy out votes to allow the agreement since the Left lawmakers had withdrawn support opposing the deal with USA.

Both Kapur and Sharma on Thursday denied it saying they were baseless and that Kapur was never Sharma’s aide.

Mukherjee, refuting the charges of Opposition, said the cables enjoyed diplomatic immunity.

He said the government cannot confirm or deny the cables since it was between another sovereign country and its diplomat.

He said the cables as published in newspaper is not an admissible legal document in any court of law in India.

“This government survives on the strength of a political sin, a moral sin,” alleged BJP leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley, demanding that the government must resign since they have forfeited the right to continue for a single moment.

The Left leaders, who had pulled out of the previous government over the Indo-US nuclear deal, said the Prime Minister must resign and criminal probe should be ordered.