Attacking Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah has said that the Congress leader’s “source of inspiration” for raising issues is abroad and he comes up with a new charge every time a Parliament session is on.
The minister’s remarks were seen as a reference to the United States’ indictment on Adani Energy. The Adani Group has emphasised that the conglomerate’s Chairman Gautam Adani, his nephew Sagar Adani, and senior executive Vneet Jaain are clear of bribery charges. Gautam Adani has also said that the group has not faced a challenge like this for the first time and stressed that “every attack makes us stronger”.
Congress has sought to raise the indictment issue strongly in Parliament, contributing to a logjam, but allies like the Trinamool Congress and Samajwadi Party have said that there are other pressing matters and they would like the House to function to be able to raise them. Rahul Gandhi had also earlier held a mock ‘interview’ within the Parliament complex with some Congress members who were wearing masks of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Gautam Adani.
“I don’t know why Rahul Gandhi always gets his inspiration from abroad. This country has a Comptroller and Auditor General, a Vigilance Commissioner, High Courts, Supreme Court, but the allegation does not come from them. Every time a Parliament session is on, there is an allegation from outside and he talks about them, wears jerseys. His source of inspiration is abroad, which does not surprise me. I know why his source of inspiration is abroad,” Mr Shah said at the Agenda Aaj Tak event on Saturday.
The minister’s comments come in the wake of a volley against the Congress by the BJP, which has accused Rahul Gandhi of being a “traitor” and part of a dangerous triangle – including “some agencies of America” and billionaire George Soros – that is “trying to destabilise India”.
The attack followed a report by French outlet Mediapart that claimed “hidden links between a giant of investigative journalism – a reference to OCCRP (the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, an Amsterdam-based news network) – and the US government”. Mediapart said the OCCRP is financially dependent on the United States and is also funded by George Soros’ Open Foundation and countries like France and Sweden.
The BJP said the OCCRP has published news reports targeting India which are then used by the Congress to question the government.
The Congress has denied these claims, calling them “outrageous”.
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