Sushma Swaraj strikes back, says Congress leader wanted diplomatic passport for coal scam accused

In an attempt to turn the heat back on the opposition, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj claimed that she will disclose the name of a senior Congress leader who allegedly pressured her to give a diplomatic passport to Santosh Bagrodia, an accused in the Coal Scam case.

In a series of tweets, Swaraj, who is facing heat from the opposition for allegedly supporting tainted former IPL chief Lalit Modi's bid for British travel papers, said that she will reveal the name of the Congress leader in the Parliament.

Why the tweet?

• Her tweet comes a day after a special CBI court summoned Bagrodia, a former minister of state for coal and accused in a case in connection with the allocation of Maharashtra's Bander coal block to AMR Iron and Steel Pvt Ltd.

• Swaraj's counter attack comes in the backdrop of Congress's decision to disrupt parliamentary proceedings in the ongoing monsoon session. On 21 July, Congress had demanded the resignation of Swaraj in the Lalit Modi row.

• She is also expected to make a statement in Rajya Sabha on 22 July.

  EMBED

  A senior Congress leader was pressing me hard to give diplomatic passport to the Coal Scam accused Santosh Bagrodia.@ANI_news

  — Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) July 22, 2015

  I will disclose name of the leader on the floor of the House.@imTejasBarot

  — Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) July 22, 2015