Congress' claim of zero tolerance towards graft is false: Himachal BJP

SHIMLA: Himachal Pradesh BJP today hit out at the Congress for not taking action against Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh who is facing serious graft charges and said the party's claim of " zero tolerance" towards corruption was a farce.

"Even after registration of FIR against Virbhadra Singh by the CBI and Enforcement Directorate, the Congress high command was not acting against him and a person facing serious corruption charges had been thrust on the people," state President Satpal Singh Satti said in a statement issued here.

"Congress party is talking of zero tolerance towards corruption and such silence of party President Sonia Gandhi and Vice President Rahul Gandhi is intriguing," he said, adding, Virbhadra Singh has refused to resign on moral grounds and was sticking to his office to influence the probe.

Satti said that the accusations of Virbhadra Singh that former chief minister P K Dhumal and Union Minister Arun Jaitley were behind his troubles were false and he was facing was consequences of his own wrongdoings.

Meanwhile, state party spokesman Ganesh Dutt described the Youth Congress rally at Shimla as a flop and said it was a failed attempt to divert the attention from the corruption charges against the chief minister and said it was an "official rally" with negligible participation of the people.

"The Congress is asking for report card of Narendra Modi government during the past 17 years but is mum on Congress's performance in the state during past 35 months and it would have been better if the State Youth Congress president had asked for the report card of the party," Dutt said.

He said the rally was organised to cover up the allegations of corruption and activities of various mafias active in the state but it would not help in hiding corruption and diverting the attention of people from misdeeds of the government.