Those fighting for truth are not intimidated: Cong on RGF probe

RAHUL GANDHI SLAMMED THE GOVERNMENT FOR SETTING UP A PANEL AND ACCUSED PM NARENDRA MODI OF ‘INTIMIDATING THOSE WHO FIGHT FOR TRUTH’

New Delhi:

Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday led the party’s counter-attack on the government for setting up a committee to look into the alleged violation of various laws by three Nehru-Gandhi family linked trusts, as he accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of “intimidating those who fight for truth”.

Hours after the Union home ministry set up an interministerial committee to coordinate investigations into alleged violation of various legal provisions of money laundering act, Income Tax Act and foreign contribution act by Rajiv Gandhi Foundation (RGF), Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust (RGCT) and Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust (IGMT), Gandhi took to twitter to attack the Prime Minister, without directly referring to the government decision.

“Mr Modi believes the world is like him. He thinks every one has a price or can be intimidated. He will never understand that those who fight for the truth have no price and cannot be intimidated,” the former Congress chief tweeted. His party colleagues, earlier in the day, accused the government of carrying out a “blind witch hunt” against it and applying “double standards” by not questioning “holy cows” associated with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said the trusts have nothing to fear and will answer every question like law-abiding persons. He dared the government to deploy all its machinery in probing the financial sources of the three trusts, and said they would answer each question as “law-abiding persons”. Addressing a virtual press conference, Singhvi said, “You (the government) need to be exposed fully because you don’t even ask these questions of many blue-eyed sanctified holy cows. You are harassing each opposition segment, individual and institutional, but not your holy cows. Whose special arc of protection they have,” he asked while referring to the Vivekananda Foundation, the India Foundation, Overseas Friends of BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), the ideological mentor of the ruling party. Such entities are not asked questions about the 9th Schedule exemptions unlike the Gandhi-family run trusts, added Singhvi.

Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan tweeted, “The greatest irony is that the Prince from the mega-factory of corruption whose ‘family’ put a price on everything they could lay their hands on and intimidated anyone coming in their way of power continues to sling mud on others. Introspection is not a lost art @RahulGandhi ji”.

A second BJP leader said VIF does not accept any foreign donations and RSS is not a public foundation similar to the RGF.