Days after tagging Anna Hazare as an RSS mask, Digvijay Singh, one of the most powerful Congress general secretaries, has toned down his vituperative rhetoric significantly by calling the Gandhian a "simple, good, well-meaning man".
But in remarks that are bound to make some in the party and the government uncomfortable, Singh firmly described the move to arrest Anna as a "wrong decision".
In an exclusive interview to Headlines Today, Singh said: "The matter should have been handled more tactfully. Anything else that I've to say about it, I'll say it directly to my leader... When I say more tactfully I mean, for example: Why were the Opposition parties not involved in the drafting process. We made an unprecedented move and we made it just out of respect for Anna. But why leave the Opposition out, it made the BJP very angry."
Refusing to stay the political combat with Anna's team and the BJP over the anti-graft crusade, Singh said: "I have known Anna from the time the media didn't know him. I made him a member of the Madhya Pradesh planning board. He did some great work. He is a simple, good, well-meaning man. But he has been misled.
Anna has unwittingly become a front for the RSS. Anna is a Gandhian but he enjoys support of the RSS. I never called him an agent, but a front. He has unwittingly fallen into that trap. Anna has been used by the RSS. I have a letter of RSS's support to Anna. That they had RSS support is now an established fact." Singh, however, showed no signs of letting up on the attack on Anna's confidant, Arvind Kejriwal.
"I attacked the double standards of Kejriwal. He took a study leave. He said he will return. Why did he not? He accepted donations from abroad while he was still a government servant. Did he take permission from the government to start his NGO? He wants us to follow the rules, I think as a government employee he too should have followed them."
When confronted with Kejriwal's statement, daring the Congress to declare the list of those who fund the party, Singh retorted: "Congress finances are audited every year by the election commission. They are there on the web, why doesn't he check it."
But the most determined attack was reserved for the Opposition. Taking a swipe at L. K. Advani over his latest Rath Yatra call, Singh said he must start from Ahmedabad and take it through all BJPruled states to find out the level of corruption that is out there.
|
|
|
|
Get Free Email Updates Daily! |
Follow us! 
|