The Hindu Business Line : Of saints and taints

The conviction of a member of the Council of Ministers of the UPA Government on charges of murder of his private secretary rocked the proceedings of both Houses of Parliament on Wednesday, with the Opposition mounting a no-holds-barred attack to embarrass the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, for inducting Mr Shibu Soren into his Cabinet second time.

In the Lok Sabha, the Speaker, Mr Somnath Chatterjee, let the Leader of the Opposition, Mr L. K. Advani, speak on the Soren issue, in the pre-lunch session. Mr Advani sought a clarification and an apology from the Prime Minister in Parliament and said the conviction of a Cabinet Minister of a murder charge was unprecedented in the Indian Parliament history. Mr Advani thundered: "The Government has brought disgrace upon itself".

The CPI leader, Mr Gurudas Dasgupta, said that "we are extremely unhappy with the situation" of a tainted minister in the UPA government. Quite surprisingly, he quipped that "devils should not quote from the scripture". The allusion is to Mr Advani's alleged role in the Ayodhya movement in 1992 and the subsequent polarisation of the communities that led to loss of life and property.

Immediately, after obtaining leave of the CPI leader, Mr Advani clarified that he was always "proud" of his association with the Ayodhya movement but regretted the collapse of the disputed Babri Masjid. But Mr Gurudas Dasgupta countered, saying that some movements were applauded in history and cited the case of Gandhiji, while some, led by Hitler for instance, were reviled for their consequences. Though the Speaker expunged the subsequent remarks of the CPI leader, there was a furore, with BJP members leaving the House again.

In the end, the Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Mr P. R. Das Munshi, spurned the Opposition demand and said the Prime Minister had upheld the highest values by seeking Mr Shibu Soren's resignation from the Cabinet immediately after the court verdict. But what the message left unsaid is that people with good image should be in public life, a view openly voiced by the Samajwadi Party leader, Mr Mohan Singh.

G. Srinivasan