Referring to the two tax demand notices issued by the Income Tax department to the Congress, Minister for Rural Development and Panchayat Raj and Information Technology and Biotechnology Priyank Kharge has asked why the department is showing no interest in issuing similar tax demand notice to BJP which, he quoted the department as having estimated, has not paid ₹4,600 crore tax.
“The department has served demand notices to the Congress for taxes to be paid to it. According to its own estimates, the BJP has to pay ₹4,600 crore tax. Why has it not issued demand notice to the BJP? As a matter of fact, the department, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are the frontal wings of the BJP to suppress the Opposition. Without these Central agencies, the saffron party cannot win elections. The Election Commission of India (ECI), which is supposed to provide political parties with a level playing field and ensure free and fair elections, is simply sitting with its eyes closed allowing the BJP to do whatever it wants to win elections,” Mr. Kharge told mediapersons in Kalaburagi on Monday.
When asked about BJP national leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s campaign in Karnataka, Mr. Kharge said that no strategies of BJP will work against the Congress’ pro-people governance in the State.
“In the last Assembly elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah extensively toured Karnataka campaigning for the BJP. They addressed public meetings held at every nook and corner of the State. What was the result? The Congress won 136 seats to form the government in the State. Senior BJP leaders across the State have raised the banner of revolt. The BJP is divided into two factions, seniors and juniors. ‘Go Back Amit Shah’ campaign is most likely to be launched by the party’s seniors in many constituencies,” Mr. Kharge said.
When asked about vice-president of the BJP’s State unit and former Afzalpur MLA Malikayya Guttedar, who had, a day before, said that the BJP had hunted down a tiger [Mallikarjun Kharge who was defeated by BJP candidate Umesh Jadhav in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections] and it would not be a big deal for his party to crush a mouse [Radhakrishna Doddamani, Congress candidate for Kalaburagi in the Lok Sabha elections], Mr. Kharge said that Congress candidates defeated Mr. Guttedar consecutively in the last two Assembly elections in Afzalpur and proved him a mouse.
