Indian army was badly in need of a field howitzer gun. Considering the need of the army during the rule of Rajiv Gandhi the government finalised a 1.4 billion contract with A.B. Bofors of Sweden for the supply of 410 155 mm Bofors Field Howitzers to Indian Army after a careful evaluation and trials. The gun proved its worth later in Kargil War in 1999.
But the deal left a bad taste in mouth and raised huge and ugly controversy. To some extent it damaged the clean image of Rajiv Gandhi. The opposition whipped the issue up to claim the biggest arms deal scandal of India.
A Swedish radio broadcast a news item claiming that A.B. Bofors of Sweden had paid a huge amount of Rs. 64 crores to a middle man for the deal. The middle man was supposed to be some one close the government.
It came as a God sent opportunity for opposition leaders to tarnish the clean image of Rajiv Gandhi by alleging that the pay off was routed to someone close to the Prime Minister. They went to town crying foul. All kinds of insinuations were made. Some anti-Congress newspapers ran so-called investigative journalism campaign to spread canards, chase redherrings and stretch leads wildly to connect them to people close to Rajiv Gandhi in an effort to create the impression that beneficiary was his proxy. Swiss Banks were dragged in several characters were implicated including arms dealers, agents, and businessmen having connections preferably with ones related to Congress or congressmen.
An Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi alleged to have friendly relations with Gandhi family through Sonia Gandhi became favourite suspect for raising finger at. Italian connection could deeply hurt Rajiv Gandhi and Sonia. And that was what the opposition leaders wanted. Most of them were past masters in mudslinging, casting aspersions, character assassination and making wild charges.
On Bofors issue parliament was disrupted and slogans raised. There were endless uproars. The finance minister of Rajiv Gandhi government V.P. Singh too tried to sing a different tune that sounded more in harmony with opponents.
It was a difficult period for Rajiv Gandhi. There was no involvement of any friend or any member of his family. There was no proof. But the opposition was not worried about it. They just needed this issue to tarnish the image of Rajiv and his family by raising pay off issue and making insinuations to create doubts.
All the investigations were leading to dead end making their task easy to allege cover up. An additional handle to rouse the rabble. If the pay off charge had some substance it could have led to definite recepient and cleared the matter. The Swedish innvestigators had their own axe to grind to keep the matter mudded for the benefit of Indian opposition.
The opposition leaders never wanted the real culprit identified if ever there was one. Confusion suited their game to raise finger at Rajiv Gandhi and his family. The smear compaign did dent the image of Rajiv Gandhi as the parliamentary elections that followed proved.
The detractors came to power. For eight years they remained in power but as far as Bofors pay off case was concerned it got nowhere. The leads kept reaching dead ends and the people charged with being connected to the pay off kept being exonerated by the courts for lack of proof.
But the opponents of the Congress kept raising the Bofors issue for political gains even after the death of Rajiv Gandhi to keep Gandhi family under pressure. It was a farce that continued for 18 years and it proved beneficial for the opponents of Congress like a cow they could go milking on by making derogatory sounds. The opposition failed to prove anything legally during their reign except insinuating for political mileage.
At one stage Delhi High Court dismissed the Bofors case saying it was a pity that for a Rs. 64 crore alleged pay off the country spent Rs. 260 crores in investigations that got nowhere. But the decision was challenged in the Supreme court as investigating officers were asked to pursue the matter. The matter had no substance but a political gas only. Finally in 2008, 18 years after the Bofors witch hunt began the exercise died out its natural death without any truth getting established. There no more was any dead horse to flog on.
In so-called Bofors scandal, India saw worst kind of persecution, insinuations, mudslinging and smear campaign.
1989 Parliamentary Elections
For full five years Rajiv Gandhi ruled the country with several achievements to his credit. General Elections were held in 1989 for the 9th Lok Sabha. Some negative factors went against Congress. The voters gave a fractured mandate. No party got majority. The Congress was the largest party with 196 seats but Rajiv Gandhi decided to honour people’s mandate and sit in opposition instead of cobbling up a ragtag government.
The opposition camp had formed a National Front. The second largest group of it called ‘Janata Dal’ formed government on December 2, 1989 under V.P. Singh’s leadership. BJP lent outside support to him. Infighting broke out between the front partners. Smitten Deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal began to insult and mock at fellow ministers. He called Prime Minister V.P. Singh names like ‘Rudderless Guy’ and ‘Rolling Stone’. On August 1, 1990 V.P. Singh expelled him from his cabinet. Meanwhile, BJP leader L.K. Advani had launched his fanatical ‘Rathyatra’, a communal move to throw spanner in the works of Front government. On November 1, 1990 V.P. Singh resigned from the prime ministership.
Another Janata Dal faction leader Chandrashekhar formed government with the support of Congress. This arrangement could not last long. On March 13, 1991 Chandrashekhar recommended dissolution of Lok Sabha and fresh mandate from the people. The President dissolved the parliament accordingly as no alternative was emerging.
One month later, the Election Commission announced the dates of polling in three stages in the country barring Assam, Punjab and Jammu-Kashmir. In some states assembly elections alongside were to be held. The nomination and withdrawl dates were also fixed and the President issued ordinance on 19th April.
On April 16, 1991 Congress President Rajiv Gandhi issued his party’s Election Manifesto. The 64 page manifesto promised—’Within 100 days of coming to power Congress would devolute power to the people by passing Panchayat Raj and Municipal bills to that effect. There would be 30% reservation for women in all panchayats and civic bodies that would function as autonomous institutions. The price rise would be checked. The prices of deisel, kerosin oil, salt, edible oils, cycles, scooters, motorcycles, electric bulbs, cotton loins-sarees, stoves, smokeless stoves, newsprint, postcard, inland letters and postage stamps would be reduced to July 1990 levels.
The custom and excise taxes would be standardised for a financial year. The profit tax would be waived if the investment was made for housing schemes of lower and middle income groups, in construction of roads and highways, production of power through non-conventional methods, drinking water supply schemes and construction of schools. It promised to increase interest rates on the small savings schemes. To combat riots a ‘Rapid Action Force’ was to be set up through an Act of the parliament.
Our intention of detailing this old manifesto is to show how things visualised at that time have become realities today in our lives. It was an ideal public welfare document that covered every aspect of citizens life. There was a clear imprint of the mindset of Sonia Gandhi. She obviously had been silently influencing the thinking of her husband unwittingly. The welfare of the poor, downtrodden, children and woman had always been the concern of Sonia Gandhi and the Congress manifesto echoed it. It was a foregone conclusion that Rajiv Gandhi would be back in power as the opposition had badly let down the people again.
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