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Darda shrugs off Coalgate taint, won’t resign
Hours after the CBI registered an FIR against a coal block allocation scam-tainted company with which he and his Congress MP-brother Vijay Darda have alleged links, Maharashtra Education Minister Rajendra Darda on Tuesday rejected outright the Opposition BJP’s demand for his resignation.
Reacting to allegations of involvement in the coal block allotment scam made against him and his other family members by BJP’s national secretary Kirit Somaiya, Rajendra said that he had severed his links with JLD Yavatmal Energy in 2008 and had nothing to do with the scam.
By way of clarification, Rajendra said: “I had bought the company’s shares valued of Rs 1 lakh in 2006. The company had planned to set up a power plant in Yavatmal and as that is my home town I had purchased the shares. However, I sold the shares in 2008. At present, I have no connection with that company”.
“The whole thing (coal blocks allocation happened much later, so I am in no way involved,” Rajendra said.
On his part, Rajendra’s elder brother Vijay Darda had denied that he had any link with the JLD Yavatmal Energy since 2008.
On Somaiya’s demand for his resignation, an angry Rajendra said: “Why should I resign? Somaiya is not my boss. Nor is he a police officer. If the allegations against me are proved, I will quit on my own and won’t wait for anyone to seek my resignation.”
Earlier, following the registration of an FIR against coal allocation scam-tainted companies — Vini Iron and Steel, Nav Bharat Steel and JLD Yavatmal Energy (with which Dardas are said to have direct links), Somaiya upped the ante and demanded the resignation of Rajendra.
“He (Rajendra) should resign from the Maharashtra Cabinet. His resignation is a must to facilitate an impartial probe into the coal block allocation scam by the CBI,” he said. Somaiya said that if Rajendra chose to continue as a Minister, then he would call on Maharashtra Governor K Sankaranarayanan and submit a memorandum seeking the dismissal of Rajendra from the State Cabinet.
Alluding to Rajendra’s claim that he had no link with the Yavatmal-based company in 2008, Somaiya said: “My information is that he was associated with the company till as late as 2011. If he and his brother have indeed severed links with the Yavatmal company, why have they not surrendered the coal blocks to the Government?,” he asked.
Somaiya had last week alleged that Dardas had made a profit of staggering Rs 25,000 crore by seeking allotment of coal blocks from the Centre. Somaiya went onto express apprehension that the Congress leadership might make Dardas the scapegoats to save Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the coal block allocation scam. “The firms to which Dardas and Jayaswals are linked are eight of the total 142 allocations and BJP’s main focus is on all the 142,” he added.
Hours after the CBI registered an FIR against a coal block allocation scam-tainted company with which he and his Congress MP-brother Vijay Darda have alleged links, Maharashtra Education Minister Rajendra Darda on Tuesday rejected outright the Opposition BJP’s demand for his resignation.
Reacting to allegations of involvement in the coal block allotment scam made against him and his other family members by BJP’s national secretary Kirit Somaiya, Rajendra said that he had severed his links with JLD Yavatmal Energy in 2008 and had nothing to do with the scam.
By way of clarification, Rajendra said: “I had bought the company’s shares valued of Rs 1 lakh in 2006. The company had planned to set up a power plant in Yavatmal and as that is my home town I had purchased the shares. However, I sold the shares in 2008. At present, I have no connection with that company”.
“The whole thing (coal blocks allocation happened much later, so I am in no way involved,” Rajendra said.
On his part, Rajendra’s elder brother Vijay Darda had denied that he had any link with the JLD Yavatmal Energy since 2008.
On Somaiya’s demand for his resignation, an angry Rajendra said: “Why should I resign? Somaiya is not my boss. Nor is he a police officer. If the allegations against me are proved, I will quit on my own and won’t wait for anyone to seek my resignation.”
Earlier, following the registration of an FIR against coal allocation scam-tainted companies — Vini Iron and Steel, Nav Bharat Steel and JLD Yavatmal Energy (with which Dardas are said to have direct links), Somaiya upped the ante and demanded the resignation of Rajendra.
“He (Rajendra) should resign from the Maharashtra Cabinet. His resignation is a must to facilitate an impartial probe into the coal block allocation scam by the CBI,” he said. Somaiya said that if Rajendra chose to continue as a Minister, then he would call on Maharashtra Governor K Sankaranarayanan and submit a memorandum seeking the dismissal of Rajendra from the State Cabinet.
Alluding to Rajendra’s claim that he had no link with the Yavatmal-based company in 2008, Somaiya said: “My information is that he was associated with the company till as late as 2011. If he and his brother have indeed severed links with the Yavatmal company, why have they not surrendered the coal blocks to the Government?,” he asked.
Somaiya had last week alleged that Dardas had made a profit of staggering Rs 25,000 crore by seeking allotment of coal blocks from the Centre. Somaiya went onto express apprehension that the Congress leadership might make Dardas the scapegoats to save Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the coal block allocation scam. “The firms to which Dardas and Jayaswals are linked are eight of the total 142 allocations and BJP’s main focus is on all the 142,” he added.
