New Delhi
15 March 2011
Just when one thought the Manmohan Singh Government, and, by extension,
the Congress party, had been spared the embarrassment of the WikiLeaks cables came
the allegations such as how certain Cabinet ministers were purportedly replaced with
others having pro-US credentials, and how the government had allowed itself to be led
into a situation where it had to choose between either the India-US nuclear deal or the
traditional relationship with the Shi'ite Iran.
In an election season, when five states including two ruled by the Left parties are going
to polls next month, politicians are loathe to let go of any issue that would put their
opponents on the mat, and that is what a combined Opposition represented by the CPI(M)
and the BJP sought to do Tuesday.
In the Rajya Sabha, the CPI(M) was joined by the CPI, BJP and Shiv Sena over the issue
of publication of a secret US diplomatic cable made available by whistle-blower website
WikiLeaks to an Indian newspaper. In it the then US ambassador to India David C
Mulford is reported to have described Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's being
divested of the petroleum portfolio as a "determination to ensure that US / India relations
continue to move ahead rapidly".
The BJP, in turn, demanded a clarification from the government on the report, which
alluded to a "US tilt" in the Union Council of Ministers extant in 2006. (Petroleum
Ministry was taken from Aiyar and given to Congress MP Murli Deora.) One of the senior
BJP leaders, Venkaiah Naidu, told reporters outside Parliament House that "it is a very
serious matter. Government should give a statement. We want the government to
clarify".
If Aiyar smirked under his breath, he did not let on. Aiyar told inquisitive journalists
outside Parliament House that he was not surprised when he was relieved "at the first
opportunity" of the "temporary charge".
For its part, the Congress party distanced itself from the controversy, with its spokesman
Abhishek Singhvi rejecting the authenticity of the "senseless" reports.
Raising the issue in the Rajya Sabha during Zero Hour, P Rajeeve of CPI(M) said the
pro-American tilt, as suggested by the media report, was a "shameful act." He was
supported by his party colleague, Brinda Karat, who demanded a reply from the
government on the issue.
K Rahman Khan, deputy chairman of the Rajya Sabha, said it was upto the government
to reply or not. But the CPI(M) members, supported by BJP and Shiv Sena, said there
was also a reference in the WikiLeaks cables to the inclusion of ministers "with strong
pro-US credentials" such as Saifuddin Soz, Anand Sharma, Ashwani Kumar and Kapil
Sibal, in the Cabinet.
Mr Rajeeve cited the cable as describing Aiyar as a "contentious and outspoken Iran
pipeline advocate", who was replaced by "pro-US" Murli Deora. Amid shouts of "shame,"
he added that the net effect of the cabinet reshuffle was "likely to be excellent for the US
goals in India."
Further, the references about "Kerala mafia" in the Prime Minister's Office provoked the
members to shout the slogan, "Shame on the government". They reiterated their demand
for a response from the government but it was not acceded to by Mr Khan. "Today
members are breaking all rules. This is not the way," Mr Khan said, adding that the Chair
could not ask the government to respond to a Zero Hour mention. He also repeatedly
pointed to Ms Karat, observing that she was breaking the rules.
Aiyar, the man at the centre of it all, remained poised. "I was told explicitly that it was a
temporary charge. I thought I will be there (Petroleum Ministry) for a week or two. It
turned out to be 20 months. So it is not surprising that at the first opportunity when the
reshuffle took place I was relieved of my temporary charge," he said when asked for his
reaction.
Asked whether there was any US influence on the Cabinet reshuffle, Aiyar said, "How
would I know? I was given temporary charge of Oil Ministry." The Congress leader and
Rajya Sabha MP went on to add that even after the reshuffle remained a member of the
Council of Ministers. "I was part of the government at that time. Even after the reshuffle I
was not thrown out of the government, I remained in the government".
Aiyar's colleague and party spokesman, Abhishek Singhvi, retorted to queries from
journalists by saying that if national parties were to react to such reports, "this country's
democracy, its spirit, its stability would be diminished".
"These are elements of sensation and all the more senseless. These are subjective
views of individuals at an unauthenticated and unverified stage. There is no question of
accepting their veracity, no question of accepting their authenticity," Singhvi said.
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