ED action may have raised suspicion about alleged role of the Congress in wrongdoings.
NEW DELHI
Just days before voting in Rajasthan, the Congress and the BJP were engaged in a war of words over what the Grand Old Party called “misuse of the enforcement agency” for settling political scores even as ED seized properties worth Rs 751.9 crore in a money-laundering case linked to the National Herald case.
In another controversy, the Election Commission of India issued a show cause notice to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his ‘jaibkatra’ (pickpocket) and ‘pannauti’ (unlucky person) remarks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi at an election rally. The BJP had written a complaint to ECI on 22 November about Gandhi using derogatory remarks about PM Modi in his rallies for Rajasthan election.
Gandhi while addressing a rally in Barmer claimed that the PM’s presence in the Narendra Modi stadium was the reason behind India’s cricket World Cup final loss on 19 November. Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, while slamming the ED action in the National Herald newspaper case, said, “Political parties and ruling powers will come and go, but the institutions are the enduring pillars of any democracy, whose independence, integrity and professionalism are meant to inure them from political pressures of the day.”
While political analysts say such controversies linked to ED action so close to the voting day rarely impact voters’ decision, the Congress said the BJP-led Union government has panicked in the face of imminent defeat in state elections and is misusing government agencies. The BJP countered by saying that the enforcement agencies were doing their job independently. Political analyst Ritwick Srivastav said it is hard to ignore the timing of the ED action which comes just days before voting in Rajasthan. “The ED raids are certainly mistimed. They have not left enough time for BJP to influence the swing voters and percolate this narrative on the ground,” said Srivastav.
“By now voters have already decided whether to support the ruling Congress or vote for a change. On the other hand, l think voters would view these as another ED action against institutions linked to Congress leaders just to harass them,” he said.
However, another observer said the ED action, in some way, is likely to raise suspicion about the alleged involvement of the Congress and its leaders in wrongdoings. “This suits the BJP’s narrative in Rajasthan where the party has been targeting the ruling Congress over alleged corruption,” he added.
The ED probe revolves around alleged money laundering case linked to the National Herald newspaper. The case involves allegations of cheating, conspiracy and criminal breach of trust in the acquisition of the Associated Journals Limited—which ran the newspaper—by Young Indian Pvt Ltd. During the probe, investigators also questioned Sonia and Rahul Gandhi and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge.
Earlier, the probe agency said in a message on social media platform X: “ED has issued an order to provisionally attach properties worth Rs 751.9 crore in a money-laundering case investigated under the PMLA, 2002. Investigation revealed that M/s. Associated Journals Ltd. (AJL) is in possession of proceeds of crime in the form of immovable properties spread across many cities of India such as Delhi, Mumbai and Lucknow to the tune of Rs 661.69 crore and M/s Young Indian (YI) is in possession of proceeds of crime to the tune of Rs 90.21 crore in the form of investment in equity shares of AJL.
The ED action just days before voting in Rajasthan and Telangana left Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge fuming. He said on X, “Reports of attachment of AJL’s properties by the Enforcement Directorate are a clear indication of the BJP’s panic in the ongoing elections. “
“Staring at defeat in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Telangana and Mizoram, the BJP government feels compelled to misuse its agencies,” he said. “This attempt too will fail and the BJP will be defeated in the polls… This pattern of misuse of agencies during elections by the BJP establishment is not new and now stands fully exposed before the entire nation,” he said.
“National Herald was the voice of the Freedom Movement. The Indian National Congress is proud of its role in the Freedom Movement,” said Kharge. “We are reminded of Pandit Nehru’s quote on the masthead of the newspaper – ‘Freedom is in peril, Defend it with all your might’. We will continue to fight for the ideals on which our Democratic Republic is founded,” he said.
The Indian National Congress has full faith in the wisdom of the people of India to see through this nefarious game, said the Congress chief. Some I.N.D.I.A bloc partners of the Congress also criticised the ED action. Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said that the raids were no surprise since the three central investigating agencies were under the Bharatiya Janata Party’s toolkit.