By naming Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Home Minister P Chidambaram in the telecom scandal, former minister A Raja has begun a chess game that he hopes will eventually get him out of jail.
Accused of causing a loss of Rs 1.7 lakh crore by giving away mobile spectrum cheap, Raja told a court yesterday Chidambaram and Manmohan Singh were fully aware of what he was doing with the national asset.
A lawyer himself, Raja has achieved his immediate objective of putting the Congress on the defensive. The BJP is already demanding the resignation of Manmohan Singh, acknowledged as 'clean', and Chidambaram, finance minister when the scam took place. By flinging mud at them, Raja's immediate objective is to divert attention from his own misdeeds.
Predictably, Chidambaram has rejected the demand for his resignation, saying he had only looked at the equity aspect of the deal, and not at the sale of spectrum. Raja and Kanimozhi, two prominent DMK leaders, are in jail in connection with the spectrum scandal.
Defending himself in court, Raja said he had only followed the previous NDA government's policy, and had done nothing wrong. This is an old argument, and the court and the prosecution may not let him off so easily. Their counter argument would be that it makes no business sense for a nation to sell spectrum at old rates, or in keeping with outdated policy.
Around the time DMK leaders Raja and Kanimozhi got jailed, the party lost power in Tamil Nadu. The UPA, of which it is a major partner, hasn't given compensated the Tamil Nadu party with replacement ministries, which means the DMK is now a pale shadow of its former self. Leaders who addressed the party's recent conference in Coimbatore said little that could cheer up the cadres. Raja's naming of the prime minister is being welcomed as the beginning of an interesting political game.
Clearly, Raja is banking on the possibility that the Congress, if pushed hard enough, might find ways to help him out of his misery. That may not be too easy, but he is definitely going to try.
Accused of causing a loss of Rs 1.7 lakh crore by giving away mobile spectrum cheap, Raja told a court yesterday Chidambaram and Manmohan Singh were fully aware of what he was doing with the national asset.
A lawyer himself, Raja has achieved his immediate objective of putting the Congress on the defensive. The BJP is already demanding the resignation of Manmohan Singh, acknowledged as 'clean', and Chidambaram, finance minister when the scam took place. By flinging mud at them, Raja's immediate objective is to divert attention from his own misdeeds.
Predictably, Chidambaram has rejected the demand for his resignation, saying he had only looked at the equity aspect of the deal, and not at the sale of spectrum. Raja and Kanimozhi, two prominent DMK leaders, are in jail in connection with the spectrum scandal.
Defending himself in court, Raja said he had only followed the previous NDA government's policy, and had done nothing wrong. This is an old argument, and the court and the prosecution may not let him off so easily. Their counter argument would be that it makes no business sense for a nation to sell spectrum at old rates, or in keeping with outdated policy.
Around the time DMK leaders Raja and Kanimozhi got jailed, the party lost power in Tamil Nadu. The UPA, of which it is a major partner, hasn't given compensated the Tamil Nadu party with replacement ministries, which means the DMK is now a pale shadow of its former self. Leaders who addressed the party's recent conference in Coimbatore said little that could cheer up the cadres. Raja's naming of the prime minister is being welcomed as the beginning of an interesting political game.
Clearly, Raja is banking on the possibility that the Congress, if pushed hard enough, might find ways to help him out of his misery. That may not be too easy, but he is definitely going to try.
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