Congress workers on Tuesday burst crackers and distributed sweets outside former Union Minister Suresh Kalmadi's residence in Pune's Erandwane. This comes a day after a Delhi court accepted the ED's closure report in the 2010 Commonwealth Games-related alleged money laundering case against him.
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The slogan "Sabse bada khiladi, Suresh Kalmadi," which echoed in Pune several years ago, was heard once again as his supporters celebrated. They said the court's acceptance of the closure report shows that Kalmadi was not involved in any wrongdoing.
"'Bhagwan ke ghar der hai, andher nahi' – this has been proved today. Former Pune MP Suresh Kalmadi has gotten a clean chit in the 2010 CWG case. In the last 15 years, the government could not produce credible evidence in court against Kalmadi. The BJP, social activist Anna Hazare, and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal had levelled serious allegations against him, but yesterday, the court gave him a clean chit," a Congress leader said.
Abhay Chhajed, a senior Congress leader from Pune and a close aide of Kalmadi, said that although it took a long time, the truth has finally prevailed. "Kalmadi had refuted all the charges then and maintained that no wrongdoing had taken place in the CWG. The CBI and the ED have now acknowledged that no money trail was found," he said. "Although Kalmadi has got a clean chit, it is like 'justice delayed is justice denied' as the particular case cost him his political career," he added.
Meanwhile, Kalmadi or his family members haven't reacted to the court's decision yet. Reportedly, the former Union Minister is not in a position to move around due to health reasons.
(With PTI inputs)
