Congress sees plot to destablise Kamal Nath government

Bhopal: The sensational high-profile honey-trapping racket, busted three days ago, on Saturday took a new turn with state law minister P.C. Sharma “smelling” a conspiracy in it to destabilise the Kamal Nath government.

“We see a conspiracy in the whole issue to destabilise the Kamal Nath government because of involvement of a BJP woman leader in the racket. The ongoing probe into it will unmask the conspirators,” Mr Sharma told reporters here.

The BJP, however, countered the minister alleging that it was the Congress which resorted to “dirty game” to save the “minority” Kamal Nath government from collapsing due to infighting in the ruling party.

The Opposition party claimed that the honey-trapping and blackmailing racket in which some politicians and babus were said to have fallen victim was a fallout of bickering in the Congress to settle rivalry against each other by factional leaders in the ruling party.

“The Congress has resorted to dirty game to save the minority Kamal Nath government. A Congress woman leader has been arrested in connection with the racket. Madhya Pradesh has never seen such dirty politics in the past,” BJP spokesman Hitesh Vajpayee told the media.

A section of Congress leaders feared that there was an attempt to leak out purported sleaze video clippings involving party leaders owing allegiance to a particular factional leader, recovered from some members of the alleged racket, to cut him down to size.

In another development, former minister and senior BJP leader Bhupendra Singh denied the reports that he knew one of the five women arrested in connection with the alleged racket.

The woman hailed from his home district. Mr Singh demanded a fair probe into the issue by a Central investigating agency to unearth the truth.

Five women and their driver were on Wednesday arrested in late night raids on their houses by the police, bring to light the alleged racket.