NEW DELHI: The former prime ministers, V.P Singh and Chandra .Shekhar, and the BJP leaders were party to the conspiracy to the killing of Rajiv Gandhi at the behest of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Jain Commission was told.

The Congress leader, Dr. Ratnakar Pandey, while deposing before the one-man panel for the second time, said the Special Protection Group (SPG) cover was removed with an intention to eliminate Rajiv Gandhi. The witness was grilled by the chair- man, Justice Milap Chand Jain, to narrate events leading to the conspiracy aspect other than the withdrawal of SPG cover. Asserting that the issue of withdrawal of SPG cover was of utmost importance, Dr. Pandey said he did not consider the SPG cover and the conspiracy as two different issues.

This comment drew a sharp reaction from the chairman to say that the witness had only “limited knowledge” other than what the Sikh leader Mahant Sewa Dass Singh said.

Dr. Pandey said the SPG cover to Rajiv Gandhi was withdrawn by V.P. Singh and the same was not restored by his successor, Chandra Shekhar.

Queried by Ashok Arora, counsel for the Janata Party president, Dr. Subramanian Swamy, as to who were the BJP leaders behind the conspiracy the Congress leader said the BJP did not give any support to the Congress- men whenever the issue of withdrawal of SPG cover to the late premier was raised in Parliament.

Stating that Mahant Sewa Dass Singh had told him about the conspiracy aspect being hatched in London to eliminate the late premier, Dr. Pandey said that he in turn had disclosed this to Rajiv Gandhi and nobody else.

Dr. Pandey said he had also wanted to inform Chandra Shekhar about it, but he did not allow him to talk about the subject.

To a question by Arora whether he agreed with the Congress leader, K.K. Tewary’s allegation that V.P. Singh, Chandra Shekhar and P.V.Narasimha Rao “masterminded” the assassination, Dr. Pandey said that Rao “could not go to that level” though he could not say anything about the two former premiers.

The witness said that though Rao was the Prime Minister and the party president, Mrs. Sonia Gandhi was “his leader.” The witness also felt that the commission was proceeding at a snail’s pace and wanted a time-bound progress.

Article extracted from this publication >> September 1, 1995