Congress condemns Nair's remarks that UPA regime delayed Chandrayaan-2
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New Delhi: The Congress Thursday condemned former ISRO chairman G Madhavan Nair's remarks that the Chandrayaan-2 mission could have been carried out long ago but for a "political decision" of the UPA government.
On Wednesday, Nair alleged that the UPA government wanted to show "some major event" (the Mangalyaan Mars orbiter mission) before the 2014 election.
"With that objective, they (UPA government) went ahead (with the Mangalyaan mission)," he had said.
Asked about Nair's remarks, Singhvi said he condemns the remarks.
"You have no business to criticise government. You are a scientist; you are supposed to be pride of place in our Constitution.
"Just because you find that a particular political party is out of power or in power, tomorrow will some other scientist start singing the tune of the Congress when we come back to power that all things were delayed by the BJP," Singhvi said.
Nair, the architect of Chandrayaan-1, India's first unmanned mission to the moon launched on October 22, 2008, served as the chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the secretary in the Department of Space from 2003 to 2009.
He had said in August, 2009 Chandrayaan-2 was slated for launch towards the end of 2012.
In October last year, he joined the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
