Congress ridicules Kiran Bedi's offer to return money

Ridiculing Kiran Bedi's statement that money she had overcharged from NGOs and other hosts would be returned, Congress on Monday said by this yardstick if corrupt people give back money, they too should be absolved of their crimes. "This means if the corrupt people return money, they will also be absolved of 
their crimes. Then why has A Raja been kept in jail. Raja also returns money and comes out?" AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh contended.  

His reaction came after Bedi, under attack over charging her hosts business class for economy class travel, on Monday offered to return the excess money collected.

Singh said the entire anti-corruption movement of Team Anna was conceived and executed by RSS-BJP combine.

The Congress leader also said that BJP's defence of Arvind Kejriwal, another key Team Anna member, in the controversy surrounding transfer of money to his NGO was proof enough of the nexus between Team Anna and RSS-BJP.

Singh said on the micro-blogging community site Twitter "BJP comes to defence of Kejriwal. Doesn't that prove me right? Complete nexus between RSS/BJP and Kejriwal. Anna ki Jai Ho."

Singh later told reporters," BJP has categorically supported Kejriwal. It has vindicated once again what I have been saying that the whole campaign of Anna Hazare and Ramdev has been conceived, planned and executed by RSS and BJP."

Party spokesperson Rashid Alvi said people soon lose faith in leaders, spearheading the movement against corruption, not having a clean image.

Alvi also dismissed the arguments of Bedi for accepting more money than she actually spent on visiting those NGOs recalling that the former Chief Justice of India J S Verma and even Team Anna member Santosh Hegde have said there was no justification.

Taking a jibe at Kejriwal, Singh said that the former claims to be an RTI activist and always talks about transparency. So now, he should explain why the money which was meant for India Against Corruption was transferred to his own trust.

"For what reason money taken for India Against Corruption if is deposited in the bank account of another NGO," he said.