The BJP on Thursday sought an apology from the Congress after a special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court found a case that alleged scam in 2G spectrum allocation during the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government's tenure "false and fabricated" and cited some recent judicial orders to accuse it of conspiring to tarnish its leaders, including late Pramod Mahajan.

Earlier in the day, CBI special judge OP Saini dropped charges against former telecom secretary Shyamal Ghosh and three companies -- Bharti Cellular Ltd, Hutchison Max Telecom Pvt Ltd (now Vodafone India Ltd) and Sterling Cellular Ltd (now Vodafone Mobile Service Ltd) -- in the 2002 additional spectrum allocation case, observing that a "fabricated" charge-sheet was drafted to create an impression that the demand for additional spectrum began only when BJP leader Pramod Mahajan became the telecom minister.

"I find that there is no incriminating material on record against the accused and the accused deserve to be discharged," special judge Saini said in a 235-page order, according to an IANS report. "The charge-sheet has been drafted in such a manner as to create an impression that the demand for additional spectrum began only on the joining of Pramod Mahajan as minister."

The case related to the department of telecommunications allocating additional spectrum in a decision taken on January 31, 2002, when the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) was in power, allegedly resulting in a loss of Rs 846 crore to the exchequer. Mahajan, who died in 2006, then headed the telecom ministry.

BJP alleges conspiracy by Congress
Reacting to the court order, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said in the evening that various judicial orders, including two from the Supreme Court, had exposed the conspiracies being hatched by the opposition party to defame Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the previous NDA government.

Javadekar recalled the then minister Kapil Sibal's statement after A Raja's resignation as the telecom minister in the UPA government over the 2G spectrum allocation scam that its policy on the matter was continuation of the previous Vajpayee dispensation's decision.

Cong used Sanjiv Bhatt to target Modi, says BJP
According to reports, Javadekar also cited the indictment of dismissed Gujarat cadre IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt, who had tried to link the then chief minister of state Narendra Modi to 2002 riots, by the Supreme Court to accuse the Congress of being the "handler and conspirator" and using the former top cop as a "pawn".

"The lies of Congress have been exposed. Its conspiracy has fallen apart. We seek an apology from Congress. After these orders, it is not saying anything. It is resorting to spit, run and hide tactic," Javadekar told reporters at a press conference. He alleged that the Congress ran a campaign against Modi, now the prime minister, for 13 years on the basis of Bhatt's false allegations.

'Coffin scam' charge also Congress 'conspiracy'
The minister also referred to the 'coffin scam' to prove how the Congress conspired against the then Defence Minister George Fernandes and boycotted him on the issue. He said the Supreme Court had dismissed a bunch of petitions seeking a probe into the alleged scam related to the purchase of defence equipments during and after the 1999 Kargil war.

"All the lies of Congress have been unmasked. For 15 years, it hounded Fernandes. For 13 years, it tried to defame Modi by using Bhatt," Javadekar said.

- With agency inputs