Cong, DMK look to reap dividend, BJP refuses to relent

NEWDELHI:The acquittal of all the accused in the 2G spectrum case on Thursday came as a big relief to opposition Congress, which immediately fielded its top guns to take on political adversaries who had used the scam to paint the then-UPA regime as corrupt.

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said he respected the judgement, which put “propaganda to rest”. Former telecom minister Kapil Sibal, whose zeroloss remarks regarding 2G spectrum allocation had drawn flak, said Manmohan Singh and the UPA stood vindicated.

He demanded an apology from Vinod Rai, the then-comptroller and auditor general (CAG), whose report about a presumptive loss of Rs 1.76 lakh crore in the allocation of 2G spectrum had ignited a massive political controversy, which some hold as being partly responsible for the ouster of the UPA government in 2014.

Just as the CAG’s conclusion had wide ramifications for the Indian polity, Thursday’s court verdict is also likely to have significant implications for major political players — in Tamil Nadu and in national politics.

DMK: The judgement is likely to give a big boost to the Dravidian party that was under attack from the AIADMK and other political adversaries for the alleged involvement of K Kanimozhi, daughter of party chief M Karunanidhi, and A Raja, the Dalit face of the party who was the then Union telecom minister.

Congress: Like the Bofors scandal that haunted the grand old party for decades, the alleged 2G scam had given a handle to the BJP and other political adversaries of the Congress.

Thursday’s verdict could give the Congress an opportunity to project itself as a victim of political propaganda in other cases of alleged omissions and commissions by Congress leaders, too.

BJP: The BJP was unrelenting on Thursday as it played down the significance of the court ruling, arguing that the UPA’s policy was flawed as was clear from the Supreme Court cancelling the 122 licences in 2012. Still, Thursday’s verdict is likely to take the sting out of its attack on the Congress over corruption issues, say analysts — that is, until it gets another opportunity.

A host of other corruption cases is still pending against some Congress leaders.