Battling a series of allegations of irregularities and corruption in Commonwealth Games, Organising Committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi looked isolated on Tuesday

Battling a series of allegations of irregularities and corruption in Commonwealth Games, Organising Committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi looked isolated on Tuesday as the Congress left him to fend for himself even as the ruling party gave a clean chit to Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and Union Ministers S Jaipal Reddy and M S Gill.

AICC spokesman Shakeel Ahmed on Tuesday said that integrity of the two Union ministers was "beyond any doubt" and Dikshit was "also of very impeccable integrity", but he refrained from defending Kalmadi who is a Congress MP from Pune.

"Suresh Kalmadi is there not as a Congress representative but as Chairman of the Indian Olympic Association. Serious charges have been levelled against the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee. As a Chairman of the committee, he will reply to them," Ahmed told the media on Tuesday.

"I am not defending Kalmadi. He is not there as a Congress representative. Who am I to give a clean chit to Kalmadi?" said the Congress spokesman. Asked about allegations about materials being purchased for the Games at exorbitant rates, he said, "Of course, the price mentioned by you makes it seem unrealistic, but it is for the Organising Committee to explain these things."

On Monday, AICC spokesperson Jayanthi Natarajan had demanded an investigation into the allegations saying that the party would like to know the truth.

Noting that the CWG is being organised in India for the first time and any obstruction to it will bring a bad name to the country, Ahmed stressed this did not mean that people would be allowed to "go scot-free".

"It is not a matter of Congress or BJP. Members of other parties are also there," said Ahmed, maintaining those who face the allegations will have to respond. "The country wants to know an answer to the issues (corruption charges) that have been raised in media. We are also watching and going through media reports about complaints in the management of Games. It is for the Organising Committee or the authorities concerned to explain the matter," Ahmed said.

Reacting to allegations about diversion of funds earmarked for the welfare of Dalits to the Games, the spokesman said he did not have the details but it was "very surprising" if the funds meant for weaker sections had gone for organising Games.

More casualties of GamesThe Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has given an undertaking in the Supreme Court Committee for Environment that they will cut no more trees in Siri Fort. That will, however, not prevent them from bulldozing the roots of old trees in Siri Fort Auditorium parking � a good invisible way of killing trees anyway. The parking, which has over 100 trees and is to be a VIP route, has already lost about 10 trees and there are likely to be more casualties.