BJP to raise coal scam, misuse of CBI in Parliament

HYDERABAD: BJP would vocally raise coal scam, the alleged misuse of CBI and IB, among other issues during the winter session of Parliament beginning Thursday, senior BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu said on Tuesday.

The leader also stressed that there is no dilution or deviation of BJP's stand on Article 370.

"The BJP will raise all important people's issues in the coming session of Parliament. We will take up the coal scam in a big way, the government not acting against the Prime Minister, but acting against the officers who are known to be honest and the harassment meted out to people who are not amenable to their pressure," Naidu told reporters.

"The attempts made by the government to dilute the coal scam inquiry, the misuse of CBI, the misuse of IB as and when it suits them, including the Ishrat Jahan case and now trying to frame up even IB officers in the same case in order to settle scores. We will also highlight the issue of frequent cyclones and floods in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha," he said.

Asserting that there is neither dilution nor deviation in BJP's stand on Article 370, he said the party is firmly committed to its abrogation.

"Article 370 is included in Part XXI of the Indian Constitution (temporary, transitional and special provisions) and starts with a heading with 'Temporary provisions with respect to the state of Jammu and Kashmir.'

"Temporary means, how long? It has been 64 years since the article was enacted. This article is the root cause of all the problems in Jammu and Kashmir," Naidu said.

His assertion that there is no change in BJP's stance on Article 370 came following claims that the saffron party has "softened" its stand on the Article in the wake of their prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi calling for a debate on it.