No tainted person should get Padma award: Congress

NEW DELHI: With the issue of Padma Bhushan to Sant Singh Chatwal threatening to turn into a full-blown controversy, Congress distanced itself from the decoration for the controversial US hotelier.
"Congress is of the view that Padma awards should not go to a tainted person," party spokesman Shakil Ahmed said on Tuesday.
He also said that it was for a government spokesman to explain why and how Chatwal had been selected for the award, in a remark that to many reflected Congress's anxiety to keep a distance from the controversy."The Padma awards are decided by the home ministry after a due process. They might have their reasons for it. Only the ministry can explain it," the Congress spokesman said.
As reported by TOI, there are indications that the screening committee under the MHA which vets recommendations for Padma awards did not chalk in Chatwal.
The high-profile expat is known for his proximity to former US president Bill Clinton and secretary of state Hillary Clinton.
The known fund-raiser tries to style himself as a defender of India's interests in Washington DC but his antecedents have often thrown a spanner in his works.
CBI had chargesheeted him in a $9 million case essentially arising form his defaulting on loans from SBI and other public sector banks. Besides, there is also the issue of a complaint that was lodged against him for his conduct on the ship he was stationed on.
As the controversy raged around him, Chatwal made light of the charges, calling them dated and emphasising that he had already been cleared. Saying that he was thrilled by the recognition, he stressed that he had worked for India's interests under successive governments.
The assertion, however, did not erase doubts whether he cleared the bar set by Congress. "We are of the opinion that the Padma award should go those who can enhance its prestige and not to someone with a taint," Ahmed said. BJP, which had on Monday hit out at Chatwal's choice, kept up the pressure, with party president Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday endorsing his colleague Gopinath Munde's demand that the recognition to Chatwal be scrapped.
Last year, government had, in response to an RTI application, acknowledged that there were no iron procedures for selection of awardees of the country's highest civilian recognitions. The government had at that time revealed that under NDA rule, names were added to the list finalised by the screening committee after MHA officials got calls from quarters that mattered.