Congress going through morality crisis, says BJP

NEW DELHI: Targeting the Congress over chargesheeting of Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh by the CBI in a disproportionate assets case, the BJP on Sunday said the party is going through a morality crisis.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) also demanded the Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister's resignation.

"The Congress is going through a morality crisis. Why is it silent even after court has rejected Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh's plea to quash the FIR filed by the CBI against him," BJP National Genereal Secretary Bhupender Yadav said.

"Allegations of corruption and disproportionate assets against Virbhadra Singh are not new. It's been made since he was a Union Minister in the Manmohan Singh cabinet," Yadav said.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filed a chargesheet against virbhadra Singh and others in a disproportionate assets case on Friday.

The CBI had registered the case on September 23, 2016, under the Prevention of Corruption Act against Virbhadra Singh, his wife Pratibha Singh, Life Insurance Corporation agent Anand Chauhan and associate Chunni Lal.

The case was registered after a preliminary inquiry found that Virbhadra Singh, during his term as a Union Minister from 2009 to 2012, allegedly accumulated assets worth Rs 6.03 crore, which were disproportionate to his known sources of income.

"The CBI found that in his Income Tax returns Virbhadra Singh has shown that between 2008-09 and 2010-11 the profit from his apple orchards was six crore rupees. But this profit was zero before and after this period," Yadav pointed out.

"It is clear that Virbhardra Singh tried to hide his ill-gotten money behind the apple orchards profit. Did he happen to grow apples of gold during this period?" the BJP MP questioned.

Yadav said if the Congress has "an iota of morality left, it should ask Virbhadra Singh to resign".