Mumbai: Breaking his silence over the much talked about United Kingdom visa row, involving External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, former Indian Premier League commissioner Lalit Modi on Monday gave 'everything out' through his lawyer Mehmood Abdi. Modi's lawyer cleared the air pointing out that the ex-IPL chief is not a fugitive. Addressing a press conference on Monday evening, he said, "A non issue is being blown out of proportion."
Slamming the media for tarnishing Modi's image, Abdi clarified that the former has been staying with knowledge of everybody in UK and has also been following the due process of UK immigration laws.
Modi's lawyer further reinstated that no Interpol notice had been issued against Lalit Modi. "The notice that was circulated in the media is fabricated," claimed his lawyer.
Shunning reports of Modi's wife not being unwell, Abdi clarified that Mrs Modi had been suffering from breast cancer for the past 17 years.
"Is Lalit Modi a terrorist, why is he being compared with Dawood Ibrahim," further pointed out former IPL commissioner's lawyer at the press meet.
This meet soon comes after opposition parties raked their demand for resignation of Swaraj for helping Modi obtain a visa to Britain.
Earlier in the day, at a similar press meet Congress upped the ante targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the issue.
Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala pointed that the former IPL chief was "admittedly a fugitive" and "India had issued as many as eight showcause notices to him".
Citing some e-mails sent in this regard by Keith Vaz, the Congress said that the UK Labour MP had written, pushing for Lalit Modi’s travel documents. According to the Congress, Vaz had mentioned about "a friend in Government of India" who wanted the documents to be issued to the former IPL commissioner.
The Congress further alleged that Sushma Swaraj had written to Keith Vaz, saying that the government had no objection to grant of travel documents to Lalit Modi.
There has been massive uproar by the Opposition seeking an action against the External Affairs minister even after she clarified that she only helped a man to sign consent papers for the surgery of his cancer-struck wife.
"What benefit did I pass on to Lalit Modi – that he could sign consent papers for surgery of his wife suffering from Cancer ?" Swaraj had earlier tweeted.
Rejecting opposition demands for Swaraj’s resignation, the government, the BJP as well as RSS on Sunday defended her, asserting that she had done no wrong and only acted on 'humanitarian' grounds.
“We want to make it clear that whatever she has done is right. We justify it and the government completely stands by her," Home Minister Rajnath Singh said after meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the controversy.
BJP President Amit Shah too backed Swaraj saying that she had already given her clear clarification on Twitter. He also pointed out how she had just helped an Indian national on humanitarian grounds who wanted to travel to Portugal for the treatment of his cancer-stricken wife.
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