“This is an internal issue of our party. Even our state committee has yet to view and discuss the probe report. Besides, the report has only passing references (about the petrol pump scam). Where is the evidence to substantiate those? I don’t want to comment any more,” he said.

Interestingly, this was while his predecessor and senior colleague K Raman Pillai, who was state president soon after the scam, was quoted in the probe report saying that the party’s organising secretary for Kerala and Tamil Nadu, PP Mukundan and its state Treasurer, Narayanan Nair, had collected about Rs 18 crore — but accounted for only Rs 2 crore.

Pillai had also gone on to clearly explain in his deposition that official records would show that party workers were asked to pay Rs 20 lakh and others Rs 25 lakh, for getting petrol pumps allotted to them. Meanwhile, the BJP’s official spokesperson for Kerala, B K Shekhar, issued a statement denying the report.

The statement said the report that the “Kerala BJP was involved in (the) petrol pump scam, and a party fact finding committee reported to that effect,’’ was baseless. It added that the party had neither recieved any such complaint, nor had it “appointed any committee for enquiring about it’’.

This denial came despite the fact that the probe committee’s report quotes Shekhar as having said in his deposition: “Money collected from petrol pump scam had been lavishly spent among workers, for carrying out anti-party activities’’.

Meanwhile, party president Rajnath Singh, when contacted, told The Indian Express: “Though party leaders do make recommendations to people in the government, there is no question of any BJP functionary making money in lieu of allotment of petrol pumps in Kerala.” When pointed out that there, indeed, was a report, he said: “I am not aware of this, I will check up with the state unit.”

The BJP said that Mukundan no longer held charge of the organisation in Kerala. “He was removed soon after I assumed the presidency,” Rajnath Singh said. The BJP chief’s emphasis on Mukundan’s removal from Kerala is indicative of his indictment by the party committee. — with ENS

‘Left on EC reform suggestions more like poll-rigging charter’

NEW DELHI: Joining the CPI(M) over its plea for Election Commission reforms, the BJP said here on Thursday the CPI(M) suggestions read like a charter for poll rigging. BJP general secretary Arun Jaitley trashed most CPI(M) suggestions but welcomed the idea that members and chairperson of the EC be appointed by a collegium comprising the PM, the CJI or his nominee and the leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha.

“Let them come forward with this proposal in Parliament if they are sincere about it...The NDA...would extend its support to them and also give them credit for it,” he said.