New Delhi: Congress leaders will step up their protest against the Centre on Monday over the Adani issue and disqualification of Rahul Gandhi as MP from Lok Sabha wearing black clothes, party sources said on Sunday.
Congress MPs in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha will attend the Parliament by putting on black clothes. The Congress MPs, including Rahul Gandhi, earlier in August last year, had worn black clothes and staged a protest against the Centre against price rise, GST hike on essential items and unemployment. They had marched towards the Rashtrapati Bhavan as part of their stir against the issues.
Notably, Congress has demanded a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the Adani issue and staged protests in the Parliament's ongoing Budget Session. Earlier today, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge along with party leaders Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and others paid tributes at Raj Ghat amid 'Satyagraha' against Rahul Gandhi's disqualification as MP from Lok Sabha.
Among others who were present were KC Venugopal and Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. The Congress held 'Sankalp Satyagraha' at Raj Ghat. Priyanka Gandhi arrived at Raj Ghar for the protest on Sunday. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, party general secretary KC Venugopal and several other party leaders also joined the protest.
Former Congress MP and 1984 anti-Sikh riots accused Jagdish Tytler also joined the Congress protest at Raj Ghat, where the party is carrying out 'Sankalp Satyagraha' against the disqualification of Rahul Gandhi. Rahul Gandhi, on Friday, was disqualified as a member of the Lok Sabha, a day after a Surat court sentenced him to two years' imprisonment in a defamation case filed against him over his 'Modi surname' remark.
The decision came pertaining to his remark made in April 2019, where he had said "how come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname" at a Lok Sabha election rally at Kolar in Karnataka. The court approved Gandhi's bail on a surety and stayed the sentence for 30 days to allow him to approach the higher courts.
After being convicted in the defamation case and subsequently disqualified from Lok Sabha, Gandhi, hit out BJP. While addressing a press conference, Gandhi said that he is not scared of going to prison and his disqualification from Parliament was aimed at distracting people from the Adani issue.
"Moot question remains who invested Rs 20,000 crore in Adani shell firms. I will keep asking the question," he said. The former MP alleged that BJP-led central government is allegedly protecting businessman Gautam Adani, who has been accused of stock manipulation.
"Why is the BJP-led centre is allegedly protecting the businessman Gautam Adani? Kyuki aap hi Adani ho," he alleged. The BJP hit back at him with Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur stating that the central government and Lok Sabha have no role to play in his disqualification and that Rahul Gandhi "is a case of political immaturity".
BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad also slammed Rahul Gandhi saying his utterances on Modi's surname "were abusive, not critical and that the BJP is going launch a stir against his insult to OBCs." (ANI)
