Thaindian News

New Delhi/Mumbai, April 25 (IANS) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Monday welcomed the arrest of Commonwealth Games (CWG) Organising Committee’s former chief Suresh Kalmadi, but stressed that action should also be taken against others involved in the scams in the October 2010 mega-event.

“This is just the tip of the iceberg,” BJP president Nitin Gadkari told reporters in Mumbai.

“I hope all those involved, whether they are central ministers, Delhi’s chief minister or any one, CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) should take strict action against them. Only then can CBI win people’s confidence,” he said.

“Kalmadi’s (organising) committee had a budget of Rs.12,000 or Rs.12,500 crore, Rs.76,000 crore was spent on this (Commonwealth Games), there have been different decisions in this. What about the decisions by the cabinet sub-committee, expenditure finance committee, group of ministers, PMO and the prime minister,” he added.

Party spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said Kalmadi was only “small fry”.

“We feel Kalmadi is a small fry in the matter and the matter is already delayed. Any further delay will only lead to loss of material evidence. Matter should be expedited, others who are involved and others who are till now not even named, bigger, more influential people who had a role in this, should all be named,” she said.

Another party spokesperson, Prakash Javadekar described Kalmadi’s arrest as “belated but welcome”.

“This is definitely a belated but welcome step,” he said.

Javadekar said there should be similar action against other people. “We demand that action against Delhi chief minister (Sheila Dikshit) and other senior bureaucrats involved in the loot should also be taken.”

Kalmadi was arrested by the CBI Monday after he was questioned again in connection with alleged irregularities in the contracts awarded for the 2010 mega-event. He faces charges of conspiracy and cheating under the Prevention of Corruption Act.