‘Global Scamsters’ Defending PM: Congress On Lalit Modi Tweet

The Congress on Thursday used embattled IPL founder Lalit Modi’s tweets threatening to take Rahul Gandhi to court, to attack the BJP and said that “global scamsters” were now coming to the defence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Former IPL chief Lalit Modi, accused of financial irregularities in India, launched a scathing attack on Rahul Gandhi on Thursday, and also hit out at the Congress party for referring to him as a “fugitive of justice” even though he had never been convicted of any charges.

Reacting to his remarks, Congress general secretary in-charge organisation K C Venugopal said, “Lalit Modi is a fugitive in multi-million dollar frauds whose cowardice made him run away. He now enjoys a plush life abroad thanks to BJP’s inaction. It’s laughable if he thinks anyone takes him seriously.”

Venugopal added, “A new low for PM Modi, that global scamsters are coming to his defence.”

Taking a dig at the BJP, Congress’ media and publicity department chief Pawan Khera said, “Is now Saheb taking help from abroad to threaten Rahul ji with legal action? Will pressure be put on Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi, Vijay Mallya etc. to file a case against Rahul Gandhi?” Khera said.

The Opposition party has been relentlessly attacking the BJP for allegedly allowing economic offenders such as Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi and Mehul Choksi get away and flee abroad with people’s money.

In a series of tweets, Lalit Modi said, “I see just about every Tom, Dick and Gandhi associates again and again saying I am a fugitive of justice. why? How? and when was I…convicted of same.”

He tweeted, “Unlike #Papu aka @RahulGandhi now an ordinary citizen saying it and it seems one and all opposition leaders have nothing else to do so they too are either ill-informed or just vendetta prone. I have decided to take the @RahulGandhi…to court in UK right away. I am sure he will have to come up with some solid evidence. I look forward to seeing him make a complete fool of himself.”

The Lok Sabha Secretariat on Friday disqualified Rahul Gandhi as MP from Wayanad in Kerala after a Surat court convicted him in the 2019 criminal defamation case for his ‘Modi surname’ remark.

Meanwhile, on March 29, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee sat overnight in front of Dalit icon Dr BR Ambedkar’s statue on Red Road in the heart of Kolkata, surrounded by a cohort of TMC leaders and workers under television camera arclights.

The chief minister, who is staging a two-day-long sit-in to protest alleged discrimination by the Centre against the state, had on Wednesday, in a change of stance urged all political parties in the country to unitedly fight the BJP in next year’s Lok Sabha election, in a departure from an earlier decision to remain equi-distant from both the Congress and the right-wing BJP.

The Trinamool Congress supremo was accompanied by several party leaders, including Firhad Hakim and Aroop Biswas at the protest.

Banerjee started the sit-in demonstration from Wednesday noon, protesting against the Centre’s alleged “stoppage” of funds to the state for MGNREGA and other schemes of the housing and public works departments.

Kolkata has been witnessing a flurry of political activity ahead of the Panchayat elections slated for this summer, which has now received a green signal from the Calcutta High Court.

Rival rallies by Banerjee’s nephew and upcoming TMC leader Abhishek, BJP’s Adhikari and a march organised by the Left-Congress alliance increased the state’s political temperature by a few notches along with the sit-in demonstration, which has been drawing large crowds of onlookers.