Rahul faces big onslaught
Irani in Amethi
The government on Tuesday launched an attack on Congress vicepresident Rahul Gandhi for accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of being vindictive in cancelling the mega food park in his parliamentary constituency Amethi.
Amid strong protest from the Congress MPs in the Lok Sabha, Union minister Harsimrat Kaur read out a statement wherein she stated that the firm allotted for the mega food park neither ensured the land required nor natural gas was arranged for the captive power plant.
Union minister for human resources development Smriti Irani reached Amethi on Tuesday and alleged that Mr Gandhi cared more for a business house than the farmers of his Lok Sabha constituency.
MHRD minister Smriti Irani claimed in Amethi that Mr Gandhi has been “MIA” (missing in action) even as a clash ensued between her supporters and Congress supporters. She raised the issue of the food park cancellation and lack of development in Amethi and also accused him of lobbying for corporates.
Interacting with local farmers, she said, “Rahul Gandhi is taking up food park issue to lobby for corporates. He has been missing all this while and do you know where he has been? Why has Rahul Gandhi not developed Amethi all this while?”
In the Lok Sabha, Ms Kaur gave a detailed statement amid ruckus created by the Congress MPs, who had trooped into the Well of the House, which forced the BJP members to throw a ring around the minister. She stated that the concerned firm, despite given repeated extension, did not fulfil the criteria on land following which a showcause was also issued during the UPA-2 rule. The food park’s promoter company had expressed its inability to pursue the project in the absence of natural gas, which was denied to it by the government in December 2012, she said, adding that in view of inordinate delay by the promoter company in meeting the “pre-conditions for final approval, in-principle approval accorded to the project by the ministry was cancelled”.