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Congress silence on Jain report surprising

The Congress's silence coupled with a low-profile approach towards the Jain Commission's final report seems surprising.

It was under Sitaram Kesri that the Congress brought down the United Front government headed by Inder Kumar Gujral after the Commission's interim report was leaked last November.

The Congress had demanded that the UF drop the Dravida Munnetra Kazagham from the government, contending that the Tamil Nadu party allegedly had a hand in the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi.

Senior Congress leader Arjun Singh, who has widely reported as the key Congressman behind the dislodging of the Gujral government as well as the tabling of the Jain Commission report, did not have anything to say. ''Whatever you want to know is in the report, I don't want to comment on it,'' he told Rediff On The NeT.

Arjun Singh's senior party colleague R K Dhawan maintained a similar stance, underlining that he had not read the report and could comment on it only after going through it.

It became apparent that the Congress used the political developments in Goa to distract attention from its silence on the ATR.

Congress spokesman Ajit Jogi and his senior colleague Ghulam Nabi Azad sought to point out Goa Governor retired Lt General J F R Jacob's allegedly unconstitutional act in dismissing the Congress government.

Jogi declined to comment on the ATR, saying it had to be first carefully read.

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