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SHRI CHANDRA SHEKHAR : You may recall that when Hawala Scam was being discussed in the House, I had maintained that I do not think that Shri Advani and Madhav Rao Scindia could have accepted any Hawala Money that Statement was also crticised in the newspapers. It was said that I am a defuser of crisis. Similarly when Shri Kalpnath Rai was held under TADA. I have know him since the days when we were students. My home is just three kilometres away from his home. I know his family members. When I went to meet him in the prison, several comments were made. Is this the way to root out corruption that we should break our human ties? I would not say whether they were innocent or not. I have stated many a times in the House and when I was running the Government that if our son turns out to be a criminal, we try to persuade him to change his ways and try to get his friends to do the same. At that time we wish to start a dialogue with him. If a son or a daughter of India makes a mistake, we try to put him or her on the right path by firing bullets. What kind of morality are we observing here? I believe that the politicians should observe some decorum and it is binding on all of us to do the same. Even if we do not wish to do so, law and order is there to force us to observe propriety of conduct. Charge-sheet has not been filed as yet. I am not aware as to what charges are being framed therein. So is it ethical to demand resignation before charge-sheet? If this is not politically motivated, it also can’t be deemed to be within the Parliamentary code of conduct. A Government official gives a statement to the newspapers that charge-sheet is about to be filed. If anybody knows anything about the contents of the same, I am not aware of it. I do not know anything about that charge-sheet. I am also a Member of Parliament. I would like to tell you that in 1977 during emergency, the then Prime Minister had sent a C.B.I. Officer to my place for the first time due to some reasons. Before that, I did not even know as to what persons were serving the C.B.I. and what did they look like. But today the C.B.I. officials are giving interviews on television quite openly. I said this in Patna at which it was said that I am saying all this in order to protect Laloo Yadav. If the investigating agencies do not observe any decorum and the Parliament Members do not observe decorum, we cannot root out crime.

I have a friend who is a jurist and an advocate of justice. He wrote to me as to why do I help the criminals? I replied that I do not help the criminals. I believe that the criminals are destined to die criminals cannot survive for long. They die ultimately. If those who are in the power and have the power of law with them, cross their limits, they tend to push society in the realms of darkness forever. Today we are discussing a matter pertaining to a certain person and tomorrow it could be somebody else’s turn. Some-one was saying that several scams would be discussed here. I would like to submit that today it is us, tomorrow there would be someone else and thereafter somebody else would be there in our place. Could not we have waited for three four days? The skies would not have fallen if we had waited for the charge-sheet? I would like to ask as to what kind of Parliamentary Conventions are we observing in this case? A C.B.I. Director expresses his opinion against someone, and states that he is going to file a charge-sheet against such and such person, should all of us rise from our seats to demand a resignation or else it will spell doom for the political decency. Normally I don’t speak on it but when falsehood is spread is the name of conventions, propriety and Parliamentary practices, I feel that we are heading on a wrong track and as Shri Somnath Chatterjee has stated whether charges levelled would be proved to be true or not. In the case of Shri Kalpnath, the Supreme Court Judge made an observation that the Judge who sent Shri Rai to’ prison did not seem to have even the basic knowlege of law. I had stated in this very House that I do not find Shri Kalpnath Rai guilty of any crime. Shri Somnath Chatterjee and one more left party member, who unfortunately is not present in the House at the moment got into an argument with me. I said that so long as law does not hold a certain person guilty of any crime, why should they be calling that person a criminal? He got angry and tried to prove me guilty. That he did not succeed in doing so is a separate matter altogether.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, there is a need to exercise restraint in Delhi also besides Patna. If we do not exercise restraint in Delhi and instead lecture those in Patna, our lectures will not have any effect.... (Interruptions)

SHRI CHANDRA SHEKHAR : He is in politics. He considers himself guilty.... I am also a politician. I do not consider myself guilty ...... (Interruptions)