Lok Sabha Secretariat has sought Congress leader Rahul Gandhi`s reply on the breach of privilege notice given against him by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi and BJP MP Nishikant Dubey over “misleading, derogatory, unparliamentary and incriminatory statements” during a discussion of the motion of thanks on the President`s address.Rahul Gandhi has been asked to furnish his reply by February 15 for consideration by the Lok Sabha Speaker.
The communication by the Privileges and Ethics Branch of the Lok Sabha Secretariat was sent to Rahul Gandhi on February 10.”I am to request you kindly to furnish your reply/comments in the matter by February 15, 2023,” said the letter written by a Lok Sabha official.
Rahul Gandhi, in his speech in the Lok Sabha on February 7, made several allegations against the government over the Hindenburg-Adani row.
In his letter to the Lok Sabha Speaker, Dubey said the Congress MP made certain “unverified, incriminatory and defamatory statements” in contravention of the rules. He said Rahul Gandhi made these against Prime Minister Narendra Modi “without giving advance notice to the Speaker and also to the Prime Minister as required under Rule 353”.
“These statements are misleading, derogatory, indecent, unparliamentary, undignified and incriminatory in nature to the dignity of the House and Prime Minister being a Member of Lok Sabha. Rahul Gandhi, despite making a statement in the House that he would provide documentary evidence, has not submitted any duly authenticated document for supporting his statements,” Dubey wrote.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday linked the massive rise in the business fortunes and personal wealth of businessman Gautam Adani to the Modi government coming to power in 2014, as he launched a sharp attack on the BJP dispensation over the Adani issue.
Gandhi also said that the country should know what power is behind Gautam Adani, the billionaire businessman whose fortunes have plummeted significantly following a report by US-based short-selling firm Hindenburg Research.
“Modi ji will do his best to avert a discussion on Adani ji in Parliament. There is a reason for it and you know that. I want there should be a discussion on Adani issue and the truth should come out. The lakhs and crores of corruption that has taken place should come out. The country should know what is the power behind Adani,” Gandhi told reporters.
“For a number of years, I have been talking about the government and ‘Hum do, Humare do’. The government does not want and is scared of a discussion in Parliament on Adani ji. The government should allow a discussion in Parliament and there will be attempts to avoid it,” he added.
His charges in Lok Sabha drew a sharp response from the treasury benches, with Law Minister Kiren Rijiju asking him to not level “wild allegations” and furnish proof of his claims.
Speaker Om Birla also asked him to focus on the President’s address and disapproved of the Congress leader displaying a picture of Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Adani in the business tycoon’s plane to highlight their alleged proximity.
Participating in the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address in Lok Sabha as the first opposition speaker, Gandhi also questioned the Agniveer scheme for recruiting defence personnel claiming that youths aspiring to be in the army were not on the same page as the government on the scheme.
Senior officers have said the scheme will weaken the army, he claimed.
Gandhi said he learnt a lot during his recently concluded Bharat Jodo Yatra and got the opportunity to listen to the inner voice of India.
He said the highlights of what people told him during the Kanyakumari-to-Kashmir march were the issues of unemployment, price rise and farmers’ problems. Adani’s name was also frequently heard from people across states as they wondered how he is successful in every business he enters. People asked me how Adani wealth increased to USD 140 billion, Gandhi claimed.
The Adani Group is in the eye of a storm following the allegations of fraud and stock manipulation by a US-based short-selling firm. The company’s stocks have been hammered even though the group has rejected the charges.
