In a scathing counterattack on the Congress over the registration of an FIR against BJP IT department head Amit Malviya in Karnataka, Union minister Smriti Irani on Wednesday doubled down on her party’s allegations against Rahul Gandhi over his recent visit to the United States. Attempting to establish a connection between Rahul Gandhi and liberal financier George Soros, Smriti Irani claimed that the Congress leader “hobnobbed” with people with suspicious credentials, including those close to Soros.
“The question that has been left unanswered by the Congress party is – Is it true that Rahul Gandhi met Sunita Vishwanath during his trip to the US? When it is clear to every Indian what George Soros intends to do, why is Rahul Gandhi hobnobbing with those who are funded by Soros?” the minister asked at a press conference. “It is also evident that this is not the only Soros connection. Even in Bharat Jodo Yatra in Karnataka, the Global Vice President of the Open Society Foundation funded by George Soros, was found accompanying Rahul Gandhi,” she added. George Soros, a supporter of progressive and liberal political causes, recently grabbed headlines in India for his remarks on the Adani-Hindenburg saga at the Munich Security Conference. Soros said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is silent on the fraud allegations against Adani Group, asserting that he will have to “answer questions from foreign investors and in Parliament.”
“This will significantly weaken Modi’s stranglehold on India’s federal government and open the door to push for much-needed institutional reforms. I may be naive, but I expect a democratic revival in India,” the 92-year-old hedge fund manager-turned-philanthropist added. Smriti Irani also attacked Gandhi for the involvement of Tanzeem Ansari of the Islamic Circle of North America in hosting a programme of the Indian diaspora during his visit, saying Ansari has an organisational link with the Jamaat-e-Islami. “What is extremely distressing is the link with the Islamic Circle of North America. Those in the public domain who will research how the registration process for NRI interaction with Rahul Gandhi in New York ensued will find the contact of Tazeem Ansari – he has an organisational link with Jamaat-e-Islami,” she claimed.
The Karnataka police have registered an FIR against Malviya for “promoting enmity within groups” and “instigating people” by posting a video mocking Rahul Gandhi on social media. He has been booked under sections 153(A), 120(B), 505(2) and 34 of the Indian Penal Code. Malviya had tweeted a video with captions, “Rahul Gandhi is dangerous and playing an insidious game” and “More dangerous are people who are pulling strings of #Raga like Sam P, staunchly anti-India, they leave no stone unturned to defame India overseas, just to embarrass Hon’ble PM @Narendramodi ji.” The case was registered following a complaint from Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee member Ramesh Babu in connection with a tweet posted by Malviya recently, police said on Wednesday.
