BJP has faith in me, says Chouhan

Amid Congress workers protesting here demanding his resignation in connection with the Vyapam scam, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan visited the Capital on Wednesday, and said the BJP leadership trusts him.

Chouhan termed the allegations against him as politically motivated by the Congress and dismissed the demands for his resignation.

No BJP leader had asked him to plead for a CBI probe, he said. “My leadership trusts me fully and that is something I am proud of. No one told me that I should request a CBI probe. I felt the need for it myself as an air of suspicion was being created in the last two-three days,” he said.

“We requested the (Madhya Pradesh) High Court that the probe should be done by the CBI. The matter is likely to come up before the Supreme Court tomorrow. We will make the same prayer there too. The Congress and the Opposition cannot tolerate the path of progress under me in Madhya Pradesh. They have been demanding my resignation from the beginning. They are bringing disrepute to Madhya Pradesh,” he said.

Chouhan’s visit assumes significance given that the Supreme Court will hear tomorrow the plea of Congress leader Digvijaya Singh and three whistleblowers seeking an apex court-monitored CBI probe into the scam.

Congress ups ante Meanwhile, the Congress strengthened its protests, demanding his resignation. Party spokesperson and former minister RPN Singh said Chouhan is making contradictory communications to the High Court, demonstrating his real intention, “which is nothing but to ensure that the court rejects his letter recommending a CBI probe.” Reiterating the party’s demand for two separate Supreme Court-monitored CBI inquiries — into the Vyapam scam and the deaths and alleged murders of 49 individuals so far — the Congress said Chouhan is trying to hoodwink people.

Frivolous announcement While appealing to the High Court for a CBI probe into the scam, he did not seek one on the numerous unnatural deaths, it pointed out. Chouhan and the BJP think a “frivolous” announcement of seeking a CBI inquiry into the killer Vyapam scam would set matters to rest, Singh added.

“However, facts available in public domain and the pattern of incidents in the Vyapam inquiry over the past few years point towards the only inescapable conclusion — that the continuation of Chouhan as CM even for a single day goes against any interest of fair investigation and justice in the Vyapam scam,” he said.

The CM’s own role in perpetuating the scam even after it was unearthed in 2009; influencing the investigation in favour of the big fish; misleading the people and the State Assembly about the inquiry being done by the STF; and providing false alibi in High Courts statements to stall an independent investigation are out in the open, he added.

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