Veteran Congress leader and former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh on Friday demanded a judicial inquiry into the seizure of heroin worth ₹21,000 crore at the Mundra Port in Gujarat, saying he had no faith in the National Investigation Agency (NIA), which was set to take over the probe. Mr. Singh alleged that some BJP leaders were involved in drug smuggling.
Mr. Singh stated at a press conference here that the BJP government at the Centre should reveal what action it had taken under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act against those involved in drug peddling.
The NIA could not be trusted because it had worked for acquittal of the people having connections with the BJP and involved in terrorist activities. “The lawyers of NIA argue in the court for letting them off, rather than their prosecution. In this situation, we demand that the matter of seized drugs should be investigated by a sitting or retired Supreme Court judge,” he urged.
The demonetisation of high-value currency was a “big scam”, as the Centre had no answer to the rising cash liquidity in the country, which had increased from ₹17.8 lakh crore in September 2016 to ₹26.7 lakh crore at present, he alleged. The report of a special investigation team constituted to bring back black money was yet to be tabled, he observed.
Though Mr. Singh’s visit to Rajasthan in the middle of the political turmoil in Punjab led to some speculations, Pradesh Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra said he was here on the directions of the All India Congress Committee for raising the issue of Mundra Port’s drug seizure.
Mr. Singh met Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and attended a function marking Mr. Dotasra’s birthday in Jaipur. Former Deputy Chief Minister and Tonk MLA Sachin Pilot also met the Congress leader, who was an AICC general secretary.
