Chidambaram 'has short memory, is poor in counting'

Had Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram offered to resign in the past 10 days amidst a raging controversy over the 2G note of Finance Ministry?

“Frankly, I have a very short memory,” is how he jokingly tried to steer clear of the question at his monthly press conference in New Delhi on Friday about the working of the Home Ministry.

He was evasive on persistent questioning by journalists on the truce between him and Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on the controversial 2G note as well as on queries whether he at any point of time over the past 10 days had offered to quit.

At the press conference, Mr. Chidambaram was asked whether Thursday’s truce was a victory for him and defeat for Mr. Mukherjee.

“I don’t recall anything of that sort in the Ministry of Home Affairs,” Mr. Chidambaram replied with a straight face.

When a reporter asked him if he had offered to resign during the past 10 days when the UPA government was plunged in a crisis over the 2G scam, Mr. Chidambaram replied, “Frankly, I have a very short memory."

“How many times did you offer to resign, was it thrice?” another journalist asked him. “Along with short memory, I am also poor in counting,” Mr. Chidambaram replied.

Persistent queries continued. “At least once,” the reporter asked again.

“Actually, I am learning numeracy,” Mr. Chidamabarm quipped.

“So you are not denying that you offered to resign,” the reporter continued with his line of questioning.

“There is nothing in the question that concerns the Home Ministry. The answer is no answer,” Mr. Chidambaram also continued to put down every query.

To similar queries on the controversial inter-Ministerial note aimed at eliciting his response, he bluntly replied: “I cannot recall anything like that in the Home Ministry.”

To a question on the ongoing feud between him and Janata Party chief Subramanian Swamy, he said: “There is nothing that concerns the Home Minister. It does not concern the Home Minister. There is and there will always be a Home Minister in this country.”