FOLLOWING the resignation of the Hartleful politician Peter Mandelson, the controversy of the British Foreign Office Minister Keith Vaz being involved in the Hinduja brothers' passport issue, seems to be spinning out of control as the May general elections approach. The MP from Leicester East had denied all allegations in connection with the application of Indian multi-millionaire Srichand Hinduja for naturalisation, and termed them as being malicious. He says that whatever he has done has been in good faith and that his unwavering support for the Asian community will rise above all other considerations.

Prime Minister Tony Blair has given the Foreign Office Minister a clean chit and said that he cannot see anything wrong if the prominent Asian MP has made any representations on behalf of the Asian community. The opposition MPs have begun accusing the treasury benches of preventing the publication of the report of the year-long inquiry to find investigate whether Foreign Office Minister Keith Vaz received funds from businessmen which he failed to declare. Keith has fenced off the accusations as "malicious flasehood". The Standards and Privileges Committees, which is studying the report of Commissioner of Parliamentary Standards Elizabeth Filkin, will call Keith to answer the charges. The Opposition feels that the report is being delayed to prevent political damage in the run up for the May general election.

Keith says that he had no regrets about his involvement with the Hindujas and that he is proud of his links with the Asian community, to help whom he will do whatever he can. He even hinted at racist overtones in the press coverage of the Hindujas' passport affair. Keith says that his first experience of dealing with an MP was regarding a race issue, which the MP was not prepared to take on.

Keith also had to deny allegations that he took payments from a Leicester East businessmen, who had sought help with a planning application. The MPs insist that the report on Vaz, who wrote letters on behalf of the Hinduja brothers to Tony Blair and Mandelson in October 1997 when he was a backbencher, had to be brought out before the general election to avoid the charge of a cover-up.

Reports give the feeling that Peter Mandelson is making capital out of the issue by claiming that he is among those responsible to keep at bay the threat of extinction which faced the Labour Party. He even compares himself to his grandpa Herbert Morrison, a Labour bigwig in 1945, for having stood by the party and ensured success at the hustings.

Here is some of what Tony Luis says:

THE recent and continuing onslaught of Keith Vaz, the Minister for Europe, by a section of the British press orchestrated by the Daily Mail, Sunday Mail, The Daily, Sunday Telegraph and The Sun, is a flagrant abuse of the power of the media and a personal attack on a competent MP and Minister. The press is, of course, being fed with snippets by a handful of self-centred individuals several years after the alleged event. The snippets are then twisted into unsubstantiated allegations.

The bottom line is this: Keith Vaz and Peter Mandelson are both seen as pro-Europe--one as Minister and the other ideologically. The Hindujas link with the Dome has long been turned into a whipping boy. Finally, this is an election year. When so many things, specially the economy, are doing well under the New Labour, the Conservatives have little chance of being elected. The whiff of sleaze is the only way to create a dent in New Labour's popularity, and this is being done at the expense of Keith Vaz, whose only crime is to help people. He belongs to the type of people we want in the Government.

I call upon all citizens and friends from all over the world to make our views known in practical ways, by either boycotting The Daily, Sunday Mail, Sunday Telegraph and The Sun and or writing to the editors of these newspapers and other newspapers, expressing our disgust at the hounding of a competent Minister. Write to the Prime Minister at 10 Downing Street as he is a listening and caring PM. Write to Keith (kvazmp@housecom.demon.co.uk) to demonstrate our solidarity and to give him the will to soldier on.

An MP is elected by his constituents. A Minister is appointed by the Prime Minister. If anybody is going to remove Keith from office it will be the Prime Minister and/or his constituents. He enjoys the support of both. The British people, Europe and the world need good, honest and competent leaders like Keith.

Tony Luis
Member of New Labour
Member of World Wide Goans