Excelsior Correspondent
NEW DELHI, Aug 2: The BJP condemned Congress leader Rahul Gandhi today for his allegations against Arun Jaitley on the farm laws issue and demanded that he apologise for “shamelessly lying” about the former Union minister who had passed away before the proposed legislations were brought before the Cabinet.
The ruling party asked the Congress leader not to “rewrite timelines to suit narratives” but to stick to facts after Gandhi claimed that Jaitley had threatened him not to speak against the farm laws or else he would face action.
BJP National Spokesperson RP Singh castigated the Leader of Opposition (LoP) and senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for “telling a blatant lie” that the former Finance Minister Arun Jaitley threatened him (Gandhi) to not speak against the farm laws.
In a post on X, RP Singh wrote, “Rahul Gandhi Exposed. Rahul Gandhi ‘lies’ again. He claims Shri Arun Jaitley ji asked him not to oppose the farm laws. Fact Check: Farm laws were introduced in September 2020 and Shri Arun Jaitley ji passed away in August 2019 and was bedridden for months before his demise (sic).”
Singh said either Rahul Gandhi is “speaking to the dead” or “he is lying as always.”
“So either Rahul Gandhi speaks to the dead….or he’s lying-as always. Bharat deserves a better Leader of Opposition,” the BJP National Spokesperson wrote further.
Meanwhile, rubbishing Rahul Gandhi’s claims, senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said Jaitley used to speak to his political rivals and even his “enemies” decently.
“And, he meant to say that Arun Jaitley threatened him. He was shamelessly lying, that too about a respected (former) finance minister, who has passed away,” the former Union minister said.
Questioning Gandhi’s allegation, Prasad asked the Congress leader how Jaitley could have threatened him when he had passed away a year before the farm bills were brought to the Union Cabinet for its decision.
“On behalf of the BJP, I vehemently condemn the remarks that he made against Arun Jaitley. It’s very shameful. A person, who is the Leader of Opposition (in Lok Sabha), is telling such a lie,” he said and asked Gandhi to maintain some dignity of his position.
Arun Jaitley’s son Rohan Jaitley also took to X to slam Gandhi’s remarks and asking him to “let the departed Rest in Peace”.
“Rahul Gandhi now claims my late father, Arun Jaitley, threatened him over the farm laws. Let me remind him, my father passed away in 2019. The farm laws were introduced in 2020,” he said.
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