 "Jairam Ramesh")
Jairam Ramesh | Photo: Wikipedia
The Congress on Sunday charged the federal government with partaking in “quid pro quo” for receiving electoral bonds and “conspiring” to route black cash into the BJP’s accounts by the scheme.
Congress basic secretary Jairam Ramesh mentioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah had been answerable on the electoral bond “scam”.
He additionally accused the ruling social gathering of indulging in “tax terrorism” and “surgical strikes” on the Congress after its accounts had been frozen by the Income Tax authorities forward of the Lok Sabha elections.
The opposition social gathering additionally hoped the Election Commission would preserve “total impartiality and neutrality” throughout polls and would dwell as much as its constitutional duties as anticipated by the folks from it.
Addressing a press convention, Ramesh alleged that the electoral bonds scheme launched in 2018 was the “biggest extortion racket” ever run by the federal government, after it was revealed that the BJP garnered round Rs 6,800 crore by electoral bonds whereas the Congress acquired over Rs 1300 crore value of bonds.
Ramesh claimed that 19 corporations that had been marked ‘excessive threat’ by the Ministry of Finance for violating guidelines underneath the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in 2018 have collectively bought electoral bonds for a whopping Rs 2,717 crore.
“As many as 18 of these 19 companies that had bought electoral bonds did not appear in the subsequent annual lists of ‘high risk’ companies. Were they removed from the list because of their contribution to the ruling party’s coffers,” he requested.
Dismissing the Home Minister’s rivalry that the Congress additionally received donations, he identified that the CBI, ED or the Income Tax weren’t underneath the management of the Congress and nor did it have the authority to award large contracts like these of ports, highways and energy tasks.
“The prime minister promised to deposit 15 lakhs in each Indian’s account by recovering black money from overseas. It appears the Prime Minister has conspired to route all the black money into the BJP’s accounts instead,” Ramesh mentioned in a publish on X.
We had beforehand recognized 4 major channels of corruption within the #ElectoralBondScam rip-off, and with every passing day, extra examples emerge to verify the surprising actuality of the corruption which has engulfed this nation by Narendra Modi’s encouragement. An replace on… https://t.co/ZWikU9MtQe
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) March 17, 2024
He alleged large corporations had been made to pay hefty donations to the BJP to get large contracts later, whereas a number of corporations had been “forced” to pay up after probe businesses just like the ED, the Income Tax and the CBI had been let unfastened on them.
He cited the instance of Hyderabad-based Aurobindo Pharmaceuticals, claiming it confronted an ED probe after which it bought the electoral bonds.
Ramesh claimed a number of shell corporations have bought electoral bonds value way more than their web value.
“Since 2018, at the least 43 corporations that had been newly included, in 2018 or later, purchased electoral bonds inside months of their incorporation.
“Their ‘donations’ amounted to a total of 384.5 crore. Most of these are likely shell corporations, set up with the sole purpose of making electoral bond donations, or other such underhand dealings,” he alleged on X.
Ramesh mentioned they are going to transfer the Supreme Court quickly towards the social gathering’s accounts being frozen by the Income Tax division and expressed the hope of getting reduction.
“We have been rendered financially inoperative. This is nothing but tax terrorism or surgical strikes against the Congress,” he alleged.
Ramesh additionally expressed the hope that on complaints of “model code violations by the prime minister and other senior ministers”, the Election Commission would stay impartial and act with the “same alacrity” because it does whereas coping with complaints towards the Congress.
On the lengthy election schedule, the Congress chief mentioned that it seems to have been completed to “facilitate the prime minister to campaign everywhere”.
Ramesh additionally renewed the demand by the Congress and different events for 100 per cent counting of VVPAT slips to make sure that doubts of the voters are cleared.
He clarified that the Congress social gathering was not demanding going again to paper ballots, however needed 100 per cent counting of the VVPAT slips in order that voters’ confidence is restored.
Ramesh spoke of the “successful” conclusion of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra after overlaying 106 districts and travelling a distance of 6,300 km.
He mentioned, together with the Bharat Jodo Yatra earlier by which 76 districts had been coated, Rahul Gandhi has walked by 181 districts and reached out to lakhs of individuals.
(Only the headline and film of this report might have been reworked by the Business Standard employees; the remainder of the content material is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
First Published: Mar 17 2024 | 7:35 PM IST
