BJP: Cong stir supports corruption, bid to hold probe agency to ransom

Attacking the Gandhi family for its “blatant attempt” to hold a probe agency “to ransom”, the BJP on Monday alleged that the Congress had hit the streets in “support of corruption” and to protect the alleged assets of the Gandhi family amounting to over `2,000 crores.

The ruling party claimed the show of strength by the Congress was aimed at putting pressure on the probe agency and asserted that nobody was above the law, “even Rahul Gandhi”. The Congress held a protest march against the Enforcement Directorate summons to its leader Rahul Gandhi, Wayanad’s MP, in the National Herald money laundering investigation.

“Never before such a blatant attempt was made by a political family to hold a probe agency to ransom… it has been done to protect the ill-gotten assets of the family,” said BJP leader and Union minister Smriti Irani.

The BJP leader alleged that the Gandhi family had floated Young Indian to grab assets worth over `2,000 crores of Associated Journals Ltd, which publishes the National Herald newspaper.

“Over 5,000 freedom fighters had shares in the newspaper when it was floated, and now the Gandhi family owns it,” she said, adding that Young Indian was officially formed for charity purposes in 2010 but admitted in 2016 that it had not undertaken any charitable work in six years. “It served not society but the Gandhi family,” said the Union minister.

Ms Irani said the Delhi high court had said in 2019 that the transaction of transferring the AJL shares to Young Indian was a “clandestine and

surreptitious transfer of the lucrative interest”.

Taking a jibe at the Gandhi family, she said it appears that Robert Vadra, husband of AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi, is not the only member of the family to have interest in real estate.

The BJP claimed that senior Congress leaders were summoned to hold protests in Delhi because the “family’s corruption was caught out”. The BJP said Congress members should also ask Mr Gandhi about his family’s relations with Dotex Merchandise, which is a hawala operator whose transactions have been flagged by the Financial Intelligence Unit.