Rahul accuses Modi of ‘corruption’

Days after asserting that there would be an “earthquake” if he spoke on demonetisation in Parliament, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said he had detailed information about “personal corruption” involving Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Personally terrified As Parliament continued to remain gridlocked over the issue of demonetisation, Mr. Gandhi, addressing a press conference, flanked by leaders of 15 other political parties, said, “The Prime Minister is personally terrified of my being allowed to open my mouth inside the Lok Sabha because I have information about the Prime Minister that will puncture his balloon.” Questioned on the nature of the information he had on the Prime Minister, Mr. Gandhi said, “It is personal corruption of the Prime Minister that we have detailed information about. We want to present it in the Lok Sabha, but the Prime Minister is not allowing us to speak.” ‘Owes an explanation’ “This is a democracy, he owes this country an explanation and he owes the entire Opposition a space in the discussion in the Lok Sabha,” he said. The Opposition, Mr. Gandhi said, wanted a debate in Parliament and its representatives explained this to the Lok Sabha Speaker. “Pretty much unconditionally, we are ready to have a discussion, but the government is not interested,” he said. Mr. Modi, he alleged, had taken a decision against the poor people and “destroyed” millions of lives and thus was answerable. “The Prime Minister is worried. He goes to rock concerts and public meetings. Why does he not come to the House? For the first time in history, the treasury benches and the government is stalling Parliament. Normally the opposition stalls the House,” the Congress leader pointed out. “The Prime Minister should stop using alibis and come to the House and give us an opportunity to speak. Then the country should take a decision on whether the opposition or the Prime Minister is speaking the truth,” he said. After Mr. Gandhi spoke, Trinamool Congress leader Sudip Bandyopadhyay said the entire Parliamentary system is facing a “threat.” “We cannot understand why there is so much arrogance on the part of the government,” he said, adding, “The voice of the Opposition is being gagged. The parliamentary democratic system is now under threat only to prevent Rahul Gandhi from speaking.” The CPI(M)’s P. Karunakaran said 16 parties had come together on demonetisation and wanted to discuss it in the House. The Nationalist Congress Party’s Tariq Anwar said: “It is a conspiracy by the government. What does the government fear? We are all united. Shortly, after the joint press conference, Mr. Gandhi went to Jantar Mantar to address a sit-in by Kerala’s United Democratic Front, where he expressed his solidarity with the protesters. He said the government had failed in its stated goal of ending black money but instead caused hardships to the people.

Questioning the timing of Mr. Gandhi’s accusation against the Prime Minister, Minister Ananth Kumar said: “If he had any earth-shattering revelations why didn’t he come forward with it on November 16 [when the winter session began]? For laying these kind of things on the table of the House, you need the Speaker’s permission and not protection of a rule.”