Author: Express News Service
Publication: The Indian Express
Date: May 1, 2011
URL: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/3-sports-ministers-protested-but-pm-backed-k/784060/
The BJP has alleged that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had supported Commonwealth
Games (CWG) scam prime accused Suresh Kalmadi and sanctioned contracts despite
protests from three successive sports ministers-Sunil Dutt, Mani Shankar Aiyar
and M S Gill.
BJP general secretary Kirit Somaiya alleged
on Saturday that Singh directly and indirectly supported and encouraged CWG
scams. "This has cost the country Rs 70,000 crore," he said. "In
the first special meeting called by Dr Manmohan Singh on October 25, 2004,
the cost of CWG was projected at Rs 1,899 crore. Now, the cost has gone up
to Rs 70,000 crore."
He claimed that Singh had supported Kalmadi
despite complaints from three Congress ministers who wanted Kalmadi to be
removed from the chairmanship of the CWG organising committee.
He said the late Dutt had written to Singh
against Kalmadi on November 14, 2004; Aiyar on October 25, 2007 and his successor
Gill on September 26, 2009.
Somaiya said the three ministers had objected
to the non-transparent activities of Kalmadi during the Games preparations
from 2004 to 2010.
He said the government had paid Rs 1.63-crore
hotel bills for the staff of "a scandalous firm Swiss Timing (Switzerland)"
in various five-star and four-star hotels in Delhi. Singh had sanctioned "scandalous"
contracts to M/s Sports Marketing and Management (Australia) SMM and M/s Fast
Track (UK), he alleged.
