India's RLD Party Members

 

The chief of India's regional Rashtriya Lok Dal party, Ajit Singh, is denying allegations that his party was bribed to vote for the Congress-led federal government in the 2008 Confidence Vote. Indian newspaper 'The Hindu', quoting whistleblower site WikiLeaks, published details of a conversation between an aide of a senior member of the federal ruling Congress party and a U.S. Embassy official… over the payment of almost $9 million by a government facing a crucial confidence vote… to members of a regional political party to secure their support.

The cable details a conversation between an aide of Congress party lawmaker Satish Sharma, and U.S. Charge d'Affaires Steven White. Sharma states that 'four lawmakers' belonging to the RLD party had been paid more than $2 million each in order to secure their support for the government in a tight confidence vote, over the Congress party's support of a nuclear deal between India and the U.S.

Sharma is a close associate of party chief Sonia Gandhi. White, who authored the secret cable, described how the embassy staff were shown two chests containing $11-13 million that had been earmarked for (quote) "use as pay-offs." Refuting the allegation, Singh says that the three lawmakers of his party voted against the government after consulting with other parties.

[Ajit Singh, Chief, Rashtriya Lok Dal Party]: 

"Our party was against the nuclear deal and incidentally the recent events in Japan has vindicated us. We had extensive discussion with the TDP, with the Left (the Communists), with the TRS, and we decided to vote against the government and we did vote against the government." Singh, meanwhile, questions the credentials of the report.

[Ajit Singh, Chief, Rashtriya Lok Dal Party]:

"Somebody said something to somebody and he reported that that matter, this is the matter. Whosoever he may be, I don't know him. Basically it is that somebody said something and embassy reported outside." It embroils Manmohan Singh's beleaguered government in yet another corruption scandal that risks further opposition attacks on the graft-smeared coalition. While the cable could not be independently verified, its contents threaten to expose illegal practices that many fear are part and parcel of Indian politics. While the leaked cable is likely to increase pressure on Parliament to reconsider the allegations against Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's party, the faith in the morality of India's political elite - both on the streets of New Delhi and in foreign ministries overseas - after a season of corruption scams, looks set to fall further.