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ED probe against Rahul: Congress intensifies stir; Karnataka terms it ‘tragedy’
The Congress state unit intensified its protests in Bengaluru on Thursday against the BJP-led central government’s alleged harassment of senior party leaders over the National Herald case, prompting chief minister Basavaraj Bommai to term the opposition party’s stir a “tragedy”.
The Congress state unit intensified its protests in Bengaluru on Thursday against the BJP-led central government’s alleged harassment of senior party leaders over the National Herald case, prompting chief minister Basavaraj Bommai to term the opposition party’s stir a “tragedy”.
Congress leaders were seen marching towards Raj Bhavan, the official residence of the Governor, on Thursday when several of them, including Congress state president DK Shivakumar and ex-CM Siddaramaiah, were taken into custody.
“The fight for truth and justice continues... Day 4 of protests against BJP Govt’s vindictive politics and harassment of Sonia Gandhi and Sri @RahulGandhi,” DK Shivakumar, the Congress state unit president, wrote in his Twitter handle.
Hundreds of Congress workers marched while sloganeering against the BJP government and their “harassment” of the senior party leadership over the National Herald case.
“For the past three days, Rahul Gandhi has been called for questioning for 9-10 hours every day. There are several trustees for National Herald such as Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge among others. This is a false case. We have no objection to a legal probe and the Congress party does not oppose this. But they have put a false case, without any evidence. Congress party has not opposed the law but the slapping of this false case without any evidence. We are against this vindictive politics that is being used to harass us,” the Congress state unit said in a statement.
The protest led to long traffic snarls in Bengaluru, adding to problems of commuters.
Siddaramaiah, Shivakumar and other leaders were seen being carried away by police trying to stop them from carrying on with their protests in the city. “The protest is our right. We will fight for justice. They (ED) are not taking cases of any BJP leaders. They are harassing only Congress people,” Shivakumar told ANI.
Gandhi arrived at ED headquarters in Delhi amid protests by hundreds of Congress workers. He was being asked questions about the acquisition of the Associated Journals Limited (AJL) by Young Indian Private Limited (YIL), people aware of the matter said, HT reported.
The National Herald, started by India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, was published by the AJL. In 2010, the AJL, which faced financial difficulties, was taken over by a newly-floated YIL with Suman Dubey and Sam Pitroda as directors, both of them Gandhi loyalists.
In a complaint in the Delhi High Court, BJP leader Subramanian Swamy accused Sonia Gandhi and her son, Rahul Gandhi, and others of conspiring to cheat and misappropriate funds. Officials familiar with the probe said Rahul Gandhi was being asked questions about the takeover of the AJL by YIL since the Gandhis have 76% stakes in the latter.
Chief minister Basavaraj Bommai, on Thursday, said: “It is a tragedy of Congress that the party is agitating against a probe into an anti-corruption case.” He said the people of the state would send the Congress on a “Ghar chalo” movement, taking a dig at Rajbhavan Chalo march by the party in Bengaluru.
