In scam season, Rahul Gandhi says punish corrupt severely

Amid an Opposition barrage over the series of scams rocking the Congress and the UPA government, Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi on Sunday demanded “severe punishment” for those involved in corruption. Aurangzeb Naqshbandi reports.

Amid an Opposition barrage over the series of scams rocking the Congress and the UPA government, Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi on Sunday demanded “severe punishment” for those involved in corruption.

Though he did not directly refer to the 2G spectrum scam or the Commonwealth Games scandal, Rahul said, “Corruption is the symptom of a closed and opaque economic and political structure. It snatches away the common man’s opportunity to progress.”

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Echoing party president Sonia Gandhi’s views, Rahul said at the Congress plenary session in Burari: “Whatever the Congress president has said on the issue has given us inspiration to fight corruption. There is a need for accountability and transparency in public life.”

Taking a swipe at party ministers and chief ministers for not sparing enough time for the organisation and for party workers, he said: “Many ministers and chief ministers are sitting here. I want to tell them: give some time to the workers in the organisation. Wherever I go, I get complaints.”

"I know that running a ministry takes a lot of time, but workers should also be given some time,” Rahul added.
He stressed the need for ministers to connect with party workers in order to stay in touch with ground realities.

"We say there is a need to connect people with the organisation,” he remarked. “But the fact is that our organisation needs to connect with the people,” added Rahul.

Batting for the aam aadmi, Rahul said nation-building would be incomplete if the common man’s needs and aspirations are not respected.