INDIA. Mumbai: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday lambasted the Union Government over the Adani Group issue and demanded that the matter should be investigated by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC).
In response to fresh allegations brought forward by the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), alleging that “opaque” Mauritius funds were used to funnel substantial investments into the publicly traded stocks of the Adani Group, Gandhi demanded a thorough probe into the issue.
After Hindenburg, the OCCRP made fresh allegations of stock manipulation against the Adani Group. OCCRP’s report, published on August 31, claims that exclusive documents obtained by it show that “in at least two cases, investors turn out to have widely reported ties to the group’s majority shareholders, the Adani family”, and helped manipulate Adani companies’ stock prices.
Addressing the media at the third meeting of the INDIA Opposition alliance in Mumbai, Gandhi said it was important that Prime Minister Narendra Modi cleared his name and explained what was going on. He said that a JPC should be allowed, and a thorough investigation should take place.
“The issue is very close to the prime minister. Whenever the issue is raised, he gets very uncomfortable,” he added.
Gandhi said, “There are two foreign nationals, along with Gautam Adani’s brother Vinod, involved in this scam. Why these two foreign nationals were allowed to play with India’s infrastructure? A clean chit was given to Adani after an investigation by SEBI. The foreign money is being pumped into buying ports and airports in India. Why is the PM quiet about this, and why are agencies like CBI and ED not probing this?”
He added that as India readies to host the G-20 summit, other countries are watching how billions of dollars are going out, tarnishing India’s image.
Reacting to the Special Parliament session being organised from September 18 to September 22, Gandhi said that this could be an indicator of a little panic. The same type of panic happened when he spoke in Parliament House, which suddenly made the Government revoke his Parliament membership, according to Gandhi.
I.N.D.I.A meet is expected to announce a coordination committee, a logo, and panels to draft a common minimum programme of the alliance on Friday. The agenda also includes seat-sharing discussions and setting up a secretariat to enhance the coordination between all the member parties. However, according to sources, the issue of appointing a co-ordinator/co-ordinators is to be resolved.
A host of leaders representing different parties have arrived in Mumbai. They include senior Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and Jairam Ramesh, Aam Admi Party leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann, Tamil Nadu CM M K Stalin, RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav, Bihar Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav, PDP leader and former J & K CM Mehbooba Mufti snd CPM Secretary General Sitaram Yechury.
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