Prime Minister Modi may have to rue the day when during an election speech he openly alleged that the Congress party received huge amounts of black money loaded in tempos from the corporate houses of Ambani and Adani.
The whole issue has exploded and its tremors may not die down soon.
Addressing a huge public rally full of sarcasm he pointed out that since the issue of “Rafael” aircraft had been grounded, for the last five years the “shehzada” of Congress every morning repeated “adani-ambani, ambani-adani” like a mantra. However, since the announcement of elections Rahul Gandhi had suddenly stopped abusing Adani and Ambani.
He suspiciously asks the a huge crowd, What is the reason that Rahul Gandhi has suddenly gone silent on the Adani-Ambani tirade which used to continue ad nauseam for many years in the past?
Is there an underhand deal or quid pro quo between Adani-Ambani and the Congress party?
This overnight silence over Adani and Ambani after five years makes , makes one ask how much money has been received from these Corporates by Congress, he said.
“How many sacks of black money has he received?” Modi asked.
“What deal has been struck? Overnight, you have stopped abusing Adani and Ambani.’’
“Zaroor dal mein kuch kaala hai” (There is something fishy). “Ambani, Adani se kitna maal uthaya.”.How much money has been lifted from Ambani and Adani, he asked.
Now the question is, “Is Rahul Gandhi or the Congress being flooded with sacks in cash being hauled in tempos from Adani and Ambani?” as the PM suggests.
On the face of it the question is legitimate and can be asked during elections? But it is a question which should be asked by the Opposition and not the ruling incumbent and that too the Prime Minister.
People have started wondering how a Prime Minister can allege that Corporates are funding the Opposition and that too in tempos filled with money.
If that is actually so then as Prime Minister, you have the entire official machinery and anti-corruption departments and several laws besides the rules of the Election Commission stop any such malpractice.
Being aware of the open transfer of “black money” what action the Prime Minister has taken to catch the culprits – both who sent money and who received money and that too during elections.
Has a written complaint been made to the Election Commission of India or in any other agencies in the country to take cognizance of the matter.
Interestingly, till the other day the Opposition and Rahul Gandhi were charging the Prime Minister that he was favoring corporate houses particularly that of Adani and Ambani, with whom they alleged he had “close relationship”. An example of the “crony capitalism” of which the Congress charged the Prime Minister.
Prime Minister Modi who did not mention these corporates publicly earlier, why had he suddenly declared in a public speech, whether they were secretly funding the Congress.
His point that Rahul had stopped harping on Adani-Ambani duo has also been negated by the Congress pointing out that Rahul had not stopped speaking against these corporates during his speeches in the election.
Was Modi trying to expose the corruption he alleged the Opposition was indulging in? Was he demonstrating his anger and dissatisfaction that those corporate houses considered close to him, were also funding the Opposition.
But the industrial houses are known to keep all the political parties in the fray happy, though the money distributed may be more to one and less to the other.
What could perhaps be causing anxiety for Modi is the fear whether his industrialist friends noting the mood of the nation were switching sides.
The fact is that the big industrial houses keep a close watch on trends during elections and have a tab on the pulse of the people on ground. Any sudden shift of the funding of industrial houses towards the Opposition in the middle of elections would not bode well for Modi.
It may be an indication that Opposition is well poised to wrest power or at least give a tough battle to the present incumbent. One important point is that whatever said and done, Rahul Gandhi has undergone a complete makeover. He is no longer a political novice who can be summarily dismissed. Even the Prime Minister sees to it.
There is a complete transformation of Rahul Gandhi since his successful Bharat Jodo yatra. He seems to have gained much more knowledge about the ground realities of the country and the hopes and aspirations of its people.
He has started looking and talking more like a grass root politician rather than air-conditioned drawing room one.
He is raising bread and butter issues of price rise, unemployment. He has tried to incorporate whatever he learnt from people during his Bharat Jodo yatra into their manifesto also shows his seriousness.
Even the Congress a senior alliance in I.N.D.I.A block has undergone substantial change with Kharge as president (no dynastic charge). Congress in its dealings with its partners is today being as accommodative as possible particularly in stitching the seat sharing formulas in different states which may have been thought to be impossible for such a large grouping.
Clearly every constituent of the I.N.D.I.A block feels that it is a “do or die” situation.
Whatever that maybe but the Prime Minister bringing in such an allegation into the open and that too in a publicly and televised rally has really heated up the political atmosphere.
Interestingly Priyanka Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi are a completely different set young leaders of the Congress party. Priyanka Gandhi is giving stringent rebuttals to Prime Minister Modi particularly pointing out that her mother and grandmother had given their gold to the nation and that the Congress had never eyed the “mangal sutras” of the Indian public.
Clearly Rahul Gandhi who is mounting the Opposition attack against Modi with its I.N.D.I.A. block has pointedly reacted to Modi’s statement of Ambani-Adani paying Congress, by asking Modiji “Are you scared ? ”
Rahul alleged that over the years Modi never took the name of Adani or Ambani publicly and only behind closed doors. This is the first he had taken their names in public.
The Congress challenged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to use his investigating agencies like the CBI and the ED to probe the charges he has levelled against businessmen Ambani and Adani that they were distributing sacks full of black money in tempos to the Congress.
Prime Minister had in a way exposed the “corruption of his own friends,” the Congress alleged.
Analysts feel that how could corruption at this scale take place when the Modi government had itself removed black money from the country which was the reason for which the whole gruelling demonetisation exercise had been carried out. How in the first place did the corporate houses have sack full of packed unauthorised money to distribute in tempos?
If that is so, what has the government been doing to check black money and what action have the ED and CBI taken.
Modi is in a fix because being the Prime Minister with all the investigating agencies under him, he cannot turn around and say that corporate houses were giving huge amounts of black money to the Opposition.
If it is being done, instead of crying foul, Prime Minister must immediately put a stop to it and inform the Election Commission regarding it. Actually on a allegation of this nature where charges are being made regarding money being distributed even the Election Commission one hopes can and must take action suo moto.
These are serious allegations particularly because parties are being named and secondly the person making that charge holds a very high public office, the Prime Minister himself.
What evidences are there have to be produced and a thorough high level inquiry has to be conducted to find out the truth of the matter?
You cannot dismiss it as a flimsy off the cuff remark during elections. If really money is being distributed in tempos, the government must sit up and investigate. If industrial houses are being named and that too by the Prime Minister, then it requires a deep probe.
| 
