Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma made a significant statement on the upcoming elections via the social media platform X today, aiming to take voters away from the Congress party. In a post titled “Good Morning!”, Sarma presented ten alleged scams associated with the Congress, seeking to underscore reasons why voters should be wary of supporting the opposition party.
The list provided by Sarma encompasses a variety of high-profile scandals that have marred the nation in recent years. From the notorious Coal Scam to the contentious AgustaWestland deal, Sarma’s social media post serves as a reminder to voters of the alleged corruption scandals that have plagued the nation during Congress party’s rule. Among the highlighted scandals are the Commonwealth Games Scam, Telecom Scam, Antrix-Devas Scam, Hawk Aircraft Scam, INX Media Scam, Aircel-Maxis Scam, Embraer Scam, and the Land for Job Scam.
Sarma’s effort to draw attention to these issues comes amid a charged political climate ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
Here’s a comprehensive overview of the scams:
- Coal Scam (“Coalgate”): This scandal involves irregularities in the allocation of coal blocks to private companies, resulting in substantial losses to the Indian exchequer.
- AgustaWestland Scam: Pertaining to alleged corruption in the procurement of helicopters for the Indian Air Force, this scam involved kickbacks and bribes to Indian officials and politicians.
- Commonwealth Games Scam: This scam centres around corruption and financial irregularities in the organization and execution of the 2010 Commonwealth Games held in Delhi, India.
- Telecom Scam: Revolving around the manipulation of the allocation of 2G spectrum licenses in India, this scam resulted in significant losses to the government due to undervaluation and favouritism in the allocation process.
- Antrix-Devas Scam: Involving the cancellation of a satellite deal between Antrix Corporation and Devas Multimedia, this scam includes allegations of favouritism and irregularities in the deal.
- Hawk Aircraft Scam: Allegations of irregularities in the purchase of Hawk advanced jet trainer aircraft for the Indian Air Force, including accusations of corruption and kickbacks.
- INX Media Scam: Involving irregularities and money laundering allegations against former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram, this case pertains to financial improprieties in foreign investment approvals granted to INX Media.
- Aircel-Maxis Scam: Allegations of irregularities in the approval of foreign investment in Aircel by the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) during P. Chidambaram’s tenure as Finance Minister.
- Embraer Scam: Involving corruption allegations in a deal between the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer and the Indian government for the purchase of military aircraft, including accusations of kickbacks and bribery.
- Land for Job Scam: This scam relates to allegations of irregularities in the allocation of land in exchange for jobs in various states of India, involving corruption and misuse of authority by government officials and politicians.
