Former BJP chief gets 4-yr jail for ‘political graft’

Compromised Natl Security, Says Court

Smriti Singh TNN 

New Delhi: Former BJP chief Bangaru Laxman was on Saturdaysentencedtofour years’ imprisonment for having acceptedRs1lakh asbribe from a fake arms dealer, who sought his help to bag an order from thedefence ministry. The trial court rejected his plea for leniency and said he was guilty of “political corruption, and had sought to compromise national security for selfish ends”. 
    Special CBI judge Kanwaljeet Arora emphasized that Laxman headed the BJP, the largest constituent of the then NDA government at the Centre, when he accepted the bribe from a counterfeit companytopushthesaleof handheld thermal imagers, a fictitious device. 
    Laxman, who was caught on camera in a sting operation accepting bribe 11 years ago, is the first president of a national party to have been jailed for corruption, something that can embarrass BJP when it has launched an anti-graft campaign targeting Congress. 
    The case assumes significance because the court rejected the argument that Laxman, the only dalit to have headed the BJP, was a victim of entrapment, saying while the methodsof thosewhocarried out the sting may have been objectionable,their purpose was not. 
    The CBI court also slapped a fine of Rs one lakh on Laxman who was taken to Tihar Jail, and plans to move the High Court to appeal against the judgment. 
GRAFT DETERRENT 
    Laxman’s counsel argues since the company and equipment were fake, the then BJP chief could not have helped in securing a supply order from MoD 
    CBI judge says though company and product were fictitious, “intention and belief” of Bangaru to accept bribe and “compromise the security of the nation” were real 
    Four-year jail term meant to “make it clear that society denounces the sort of conduct in which the offender was involved”, says court ‘Laxman ignored security of soldiers’ 
New Delhi: Rejecting the demand for leniency on the ground of old age, health concerns and his “unblemished record of public life” of four decades, Special CBI judge said that the former BJP chief agreed to compromise the security and safety of the nation” for his personal interests. The judge said that the 72 year-old politician, who was convicted on Friday under the Prevention of Corruption Act was guilty of “ignoring the security of soldiers” who put their lives in danger while fighting for the nation. 
    The judge said that “corruption is worse than prostitution”, and asserted “we have to shun this attitude of 'sab chalta hai,' and the attitude that nothing can move without corruption”. 
    Laxman’s counsel had argued that no possible help for getting the supply order from the ministry of defence could have been extended by the convict, as the company as well as the product were fictitious and no possible wrong resulted from the act of convict failed to impress the court. However, the judge held that while the firm, its product and the deal was fake, the intentions of Laxman, who took the bribe for recommending the device to the ministry, were real. 
    “No doubt, the company i.e. M/s Westend International and the product i.e. Hand Held Thermal Imagers (HHTIs), which they were promoting were both fictitious, but this fact was only known to representatives of the company, who had approached the convict for favour. Laxman had agreed to exert his personal influence in favour of the fictitious company for his personal gains by way of getting illegal gratification with the intention and belief that the product for which a supply order was required, was genuine,” said the judge. 
    The counsel for Laxman had sought punishment of six months However, the judge rejected the plea, saying that the four year-imprisonment was meant to “make it clear that the society as such, denounces the sort of conduct in which the offender was involved”.