Union Defense Minister Rajnath Singh has rejected charges that the BJP is poaching opposition leaders and abusing power by excluding competition. In an interview with The Indian Express, Singh asked, “Why have you (Congress) given tickets to such candidates? We have never approached them. If someone comes to us and says, 'I want to support you', then we should” Say no. ?”
On the incessant raids against opposition leaders by central agencies like Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Rajnath Singh said such agencies operated independently and autonomously.
“They were not allowed to function before. They never enjoyed the autonomy they were supposed to be given. We have given them autonomy. Just look at the value of assets seized during the UPA and NDA periods. During the UPA era, the value of assets seized by the ED was merely ₹5,086 million; it was like that during the NDA era ₹1.2 lakh crore. Are we causing loss to the nation or are we doing something good?” Singh told Indian Express.
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Singh further warned against misinterpreting Modi's mangalsutra comment. He said the Prime Minister was trying to simplify complex issues for the public.
“Don't read too much into the term mangalsutra. He was trying to make people understand it. It is a term that everyone will understand if you want to refer to gold. You (Congress leader Rahul Gandhi) are talking about a wealth survey… Why should you do that? Do you want to do a survey?” Singh told the English daily.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused the Congress at a public meeting on April 21 and said that if Congress is voted to power, they will conduct an asset survey to seize people's assets and take their lifetime savings. PM Modi said your mangalsutra will not be safe under Congress rule.
On Saturday, former Delhi Congress president Arvinder Singh Lovely joined the BJP along with a few other leaders including former MLAs Raj Kumar Chauhan, Neeraj Basoya and Naseeb Singh. On Friday, Akshay Kanti Bam from Indore also joined the saffron party. Amid the Lok Sabha polls, several other leaders of opposition parties JJP, Samajwadi Party, TMC, etc. have joined the BJP.
Former Delhi Congress chief Arvinder Singh Lovely joins BJP
The opposition claims that the BJP is using money power to buy their leaders and weaken Indian democracy.
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Last month, the Indian Express report said that 25 prominent politicians from the opposition ranks, who faced investigations by central agencies in corruption cases, have switched to the BJP since 2014. Of these, 23 leaders were given a reprieve in the cases by the investigating agencies.
The Opposition has called the BJP a 'washing machine', referring to the increasing phenomenon of politicians accused of corruption not facing any investigation after switching to the BJP.
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Published: May 5, 2024 09:13 AM IST