New Delhi, April 18: Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy has sought sanction from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to prosecute Congress president and National Advisory Council (NAC) chairperson Sonia Gandhi under the Prevention of Corruption Act. In an attempt to revive the Bofors pay-off case, Swamy cited the testimony given by a former SPG officer to CBI on the frequent contacts of Sonia Gandhi with Italian middleman Ottavio Quattrocchi.
In the 206-page petition to the Prime Minister on Friday, Swamy said that being the chairperson of the NAC, which was constituted by an order of the Cabinet Secretariat, Sonia Gandhi was a public servant, as per the definition under the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
“As per order of May 31, 2004, the Prime Minister’s Office will provide Central Government funds to meet the expenditure of the NAC, and service the NAC for its secretarial needs. Hence, she (Sonia Gandhi) is a public servant as defined in Section 2(c) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
“You, in your capacity as deemed appointing authority, are therefore, the designated authority under Section 19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act for granting sanction to prosecute the said Ms Sonia Gandhi. Your sanction is required by me for prosecuting Sonia Gandhi on a private complaint proposed to be filed by me in the criminal court under Prevention of Corruption Act,” said Swamy in the petition to the Prime Minister.
According to the Prevention of Corruption Act, the Prime Minister has to respond within 90 days.
Swamy has already filed another petition for sanction of prosecution against his arch rival Home Minister P Chidambaram. The Prime Minister had to face rough weather recently when Swamy approached the Supreme Court after Singh ignored a similar petition by him against jailed former Telecom Minister A Raja.
In his petition, circulated to media on Sunday, Swamy said “I have made out a prima facie case on documentary circumstantial evidence. Ms Gandhi abetted Italian businessman and close family friend Quattrocchi to obtain an illegal commission in the Bofors gun purchase deal, and then influenced former PM Narasimha Rao-led Government of to enable Mr Quattrocchi to escape from the country in July 1993.”
–Agencies–