NEW DELHI, Dec 9: Congress today stepped up protests disrupting proceedings for the second day as Rahul Gandhi accused the PMO of adopting “100 per cent pure political vendetta” in the National Herald case but the Government hit back saying Parliament was being used to threaten judiciary.
In the Rajya Sabha, Leader of the Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad alleged that a Director of Enforcement Directorate (ED), who had “rightly” decided to close the Herald case, was transferred and a new chief appointed to “reopen” the case.
While the Upper House was adjourned for the second day without transaction of any business due to slogan shouting by Congress members, the Lok Sabha saw one adjournment and a short discussion on the issue that saw trading of charges between the two sides.
However, the Lower House functioned, notwithstanding the continuous shouting of slogans by Congress members before it was also forced to be adjourned for the day about an hour before schedule.
Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, who is an accused in the Herald case along with his mother Sonia Gandhi and four others, upped the ante telling reporters the case is “One hundred per cent political vendetta. Pure political vendetta coming out of PMO. It is their way of doing politics. Pure 100 per cent vendetta”.
“I have full faith in judiciary. We will see at the end what comes out. Truth will come out.”
Asked about Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu’s charge that Congress was using Parliament to threaten judiciary by disruptions, he said, “It is the other way round. Who is threatening judiciary, we all know.”
Naidu, who also addressed a press conference, accused the Congress of using Parliament to “intimidate and silence” the judiciary after the Gandhis were not given relief by court in the Herald case.
He alleged that the party was practising “mobocracy” which was posing a “danger to democracy” by making Parliament “dysfunctional”.
Naidu rejected Rahul’s contention that the case was “100 per cent vendetta coming out of the PMO” and wondered if he was attacking former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh because the case was filed when the UPA was in power.
He said Subramanian Swamy, who is the complainant in the case, was not in BJP when he had lodged it.
“Congress is thinking that it is hurting Prime Minister Narendra Modi. But it is wrong because it is hurting India,” Naidu said.
“How is Parliament involved if some people (Gandhis) have been summoned by a court? Is this the job of Parliament? You want to silence the judiciary. You want to intimidate the judiciary. You are telling judiciary how dare you summon us,” he said.
Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Naidu’s deputy, dared Rahul to give proof in Parliament on his allegations against the PMO.
“We will ask Rahul Gandhi, if he has courage enough, if he has honesty enough, if he has standing as a leader of his political party, he should come to Parliament and give proof…,” he said.
Meanwhile, Congress found support from the TMC as it accused the Government in the Lok Sabha of “repressing” opposition leaders, but the Government hit back saying Congress was using Parliament to send a warning to the judiciary in the National Herald case.
Citing corruption cases against Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and Ashok Gehlot in Rajasthan, party leader Mallikarjun Kharge attacked the Government over its “vendetta politics”, claiming that it applied one set of laws against its leaders and another for those from BJP.
He, however, made no reference to the National Herald case, seen as a trigger for the party’s protests in Parliament since yesterday after the High Court refused to give Sonia and Rahul Gandhi any relief.
Kharge raised the issue during the Zero Hour after Congress members kept up their protests in the Well for the second day today, accusing the Narendra Modi Government of targeting those who are not in agreement with its policies.
“There are two laws in this country — one for the opposition and another for the Government. When we raised the issue of corruption involving Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh Chief Ministers, no action was taken.
“But you raided the premises of our Gujarat leader Shankarsinh Vaghela. When a wedding was taking place in the house of Virbharda Singh, CBI raided his house. Nothing came out of this and then ED lodged a case against him. False CBI cases are being registered in Haryana but no action taken against BJP Chief Ministers involved in scams,” he said.
He also raised the reported meeting of a Union Minister with a Muzaffarnagar riot accused in jail and his assurance of support to them.
“You are adopting the politics of revenge, repression and tyranny against opposition leaders. This is happening not only with us but others like the TMC too. If people do not agree with you, then you try to harass them,” Kharge said amid support from TMC members.
Seeking to dispel the impression that Congress was upset over the National Herald case, he said “we are not against judiciary. We are protesting against your policies of repression.”
Rebutting strongly, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu raked up the arrest of BJP president Amit Shah and also enquiries against Modi during the UPA tenure and accused Congress of trying to see that the government fails.
“A judicial order has come,” he said, referring to the National Herald case. “You are giving a warning to judiciary through Parliament. This is not in national interest.”
Both Sonia and Rahul were present in the House and the Congress chief was seen offering some suggestions to Kharge when he was speaking.
The Prime Minister was present in the House for most of the Question Hour when Congress members stormed the Well but left before the Zero Hour at 12 pm.
Naidu said Congress had not been able to come to terms with its defeat in the Lok Sabha polls and BJP’s massive win under Modi.
Attacking Congress, he said, “30 people are not allowing the House to run. They want the democracy to fail. They are obstructing progress. They are exposed. They are frustrated.”
Referring to National Herald case, he said the case was filed when the UPA was in power.
Saugata Roy (TMC) used his time in Zero Hour to support Congress and target the Government, inviting a sharp rebuke from the Speaker.
“I fully support the contention of Congress that the Government is behaving in a vindictive way. The Prime Minister must respond,” he said.
After the Speaker disallowed him from speaking, TMC members staged a walkout.
With Congress members continuing to raise slogans from the Well even after Kharge was allowed to speak, the Speaker warned them against doing so.
“I have given full time to your leader to have his say. There is no issue before the House. They must go to their seats. I am giving you a warning,” she said.
At another point, she wondered if the Congress members were trying to “scare” the Chair.
In the Rajya Sabha, as Congress members kept shouting slogans in the Well of the House alleging “murder of democracy” and got support from Trinamool Congress, the ruling side maintained that the Herald issue was a legal case pertaining to some “individuals” and the opposition party was disrupting Parliament to block progress of the nation.
The House was repeatedly adjourned before the final adjournment at around 3.25 pm as ruckus prevailed, with the ruling and the opposition sides clashing and levelling allegations against each other.
Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad today accused the Government of playing a “dirty game” of targeting Opposition leaders and said the recent sudden transfer of the Enforcement Directorate chief was aimed only to “fix” the Opposition leaders with “false and irrelevant” cases, including the National Herald case.
He said the Government was trying to bury many of the corruption cases in which its own Ministers and Chief Ministers were involved pushing the Opposition to “ring the bell in the temple of democracy (Parliament)”.
“I simply wonder how can Government come up with two different set of rules — one for the ruling party and one for the Opposition. The Government seems to have a set policy of keeping busy even the small Opposition parties with fake cases so that no one can question it on crucial issues,” Azad told reporters after the Rajya Sabha was adjourned for the day.
He said Government has played a “dirty game” by changing the ED director within a few days of granting him an extension after the previous Enforcement Directorate chief had “rightly” decided to close the case.
“National Herald is a non-profit making organisation and none of its directors or shareholders get a single penny. This was conveyed to the previous ED director who rightly decided to close the case.
“However, what prompted the Government to replace him within days of this decision and appoint a new one (Karnal Singh) who re-opened the case? Does this move not smell of a political vendetta and I wonder how can Government claim that it has no role to play when they play such dirty games from behind the scene,” Azad said.
Rajan Katoch, a 1979-batch IAS officer, was replaced suddenly on August 19 after having been given an extension of three months on July 31. He was replaced by Karnal Singh, an IPS officer of 1984 batch.
The Lalit Modi scam was a fit case for registering a Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) by ED in which the Government should have set an example by launching prosecution against the Rajasthan Chief Minister and her son besides others, Azad alleged and added “the silence adopted by the Government in this matter showed its real face.”
He said the Congress was not rattled by the recent judgement of the Delhi High Court in connection with the National Herald case and added “we know that we have done no wrong. We hold judiciary in high esteem and have complete faith in it.”
He tore into the stand taken by some Union Ministers that Congress was stalling the functioning of the Parliament at a time when important business was being transacted.
“Let me remind the Government and the Ministers that all the issues listed in the Business Advisory Committee of the Parliament — price rise, drought situation, Scheduled Caste, The Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Bill, 2014, floods and rains— are all Opposition sponsored business,” he said. (PTI)
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