Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the Congress, criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday over allegations of fraud made by the Adani Group. He questioned how references to the troubled tycoon made in a parliamentary speech could be interpreted as an insult to the PM.
Speaking to party members in his Lok Sabha district of Meenangadi in Wayanad, north Kerala, Gandhi said that while sections of his speech were omitted from the record because they contained profanity, Modi’s address was not, despite him disparaging Gandhi’s parents and relatives.
“Modi believes that because of his strength, he will intimidate others. Narendra Modi is the exact last thing I am afraid of, Gandhi continued, and he doesn’t know that. But eventually, he will have to face the truth.
“How can remarks disparaging Ambani or Adani be considered an insult to the Prime Minister? I didn’t get that,” he continued.
The Congress MP urged his colleagues to view footage of Parliamentary debates, listen to both his and Prime Minister Modi’s speeches, and contrast their tones and body language.
The former head of the Congress demanded a joint parliamentary investigation into allegations of fraud made by the American company Hindenburg Research in his speech on February 7 during a discussion on the President’s speech in the Lower House. He also made connections between official visits and the gains made by the Adani Group internationally.
A breach of privilege notice was issued against him by parliamentary affairs minister Pralhad Joshi and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lawmaker Nishikant Dubey for making “misleading, derogatory, unparliamentary, and incriminatory statements,” and the Lok Sabha Secretariat requested his response. However, significant portions of his speech were deleted.
The Congressman claimed that his address was based on “facts,” and that anyone could look up more information about the issues he raised on Google. He continued, saying that Modi merely made “insulting statements about how I became Rahul Gandhi and not Rahul Nehru,” instead of responding to his queries.
“I did not choose my name. Everyone often adopts their parents’ last name. He insulted me and my family, and while it was left in the Parliamentary records, some of my speech was cut out. It is unfair,” argued Gandhi. “I’m confident the truth will surface eventually.”
Last Thursday, Modi assailed the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty in a speech to the Rajya Sabha. “Congress gets unhappy if we fail to mention Nehru somewhere. Why do none of them use the Nehru surname if Nehru was such a wonderful person? Why do they hesitate to use the Nehru last name, he had questioned. Indira, the daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, was wed to Feroze Gandhi and took his last name.
Gandhi claimed that after his statement in the Lower House the previous week, he was asked to provide evidence to support his claims. He stated, “I have written to the Speaker with each and every issue they have eliminated and supporting evidence. But I don’t think what I said in the legislature will be documented,
Gandhi was retaliated against by the BJP, who claimed that the Congressman was known for making “wild charges” against Modi. Rahul Gandhi frequently makes outrageous accusations against the PM because he has nothing to say. He now does it routinely, according to BJP leader S Suresh. “Let him provide proof. Such accusations won’t have an impact on the PM’s popularity.
Gandhi visited the home of a tribal man who was discovered dead nearby Kozhikode Medical College Hospital two days prior to that and handed over 25 dwellings constructed by his party to homeless people earlier in the day. Gandhi finished the Bharat Jodo Yatra on January 30, and this was his first trip back to his parliamentary district since then.
