Latest IPL link puts Congress in a fix

The Congress party may have hoped that its detractors would go silent after minister of state for external affairs Shashi Tharoor fell prey to the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) controversy last Sunday. But it seems trouble for the Congress-led UPA is far from over.

The report carried by DNA’s Sunday edition, which suggested that film star and owner of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Shah Rukh Khan, had invested around Rs10 crore in a company owned by Congress MP Rajiv Shukla in the financial year 2007-08, is being considered “credible evidence” in investigating the Congress’s financial link to the IPL scandal.

DNA possesses documents which show that Khan and wife Gauri had invested Rs10 crore and picked up 10% equity in BAG Glamour, a subsidiary of Shukla’s BAG Films & Media Limited, in January-February 2008, precisely when the bidding process for IPL-I was ending.

“The report adds to the credibility of evidence that has been gathered against financial malpractices in the IPL bidding process. It raises credible and pertinent questions; the Congress must act as a mature party and allow the formation of a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) as demanded by various parties to facilitate a fair and unbiased probe into this massive case of corruption,” BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said.

Sitharaman reasoned that “the IPL scandal is a major issue and it would serve the government well if it showed some resolve in exposing those who benefitted illegitimately from the biddings. Tharoor had to resign even though his involvement was through an associate. Shukla’s involvement seems, as per the DNA report, more direct and we’ll have to wait and see what explanation the Congress has to offer now.”

Congress leaders admitted that the revelation “is very serious, if true”. However, the party refused to make any official statement on the development.

When contacted, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi refused to comment.

But the Congress is likely to be cornered in the Lok Sabha once again on Monday. The opposition has already threatened to stall proceedings in the wake of media reports suggesting that phones of four key politicians, including agriculture minister Sharad Pawar, had been tapped from time to time between February 2007 and April 2010.

What is certain is that the opposition’s demand for a JPC in the IPL mess will only get louder in the days to come.