In his most aggressive attack on the BJP and Narendra Modi yet, Congress vice president, Rahul Gandhi dared the PM to come and sit in the parliament for a change.
He told reporters in Delhi, ” Prime Minister does not have the guts to sit in parliament. But, Mr Prime Minister, you need to speak. Lalit Modi is nothing but a symbol of black money.”
Rahul mocked the external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj’s claims that by helping Lalit Modi get travel documents, she was only doing a humanitarian work as in this case ‘it was a questions of a cancer patient.’
He said, “My question is if it was a humanitarian gesture, then why was it done surreptitiously. The whole world does humanitarian activities, someone runs hospital… someone something else but they all tell the world they are doing some humanitarian activity… Sushmaji is the only person who is hiding humanitarian work. Why? My question is why didn’t you tell your ministry if it was humanitarian work. Why didn’t you tell the people that I am doing humanitarian work for Lalit Modi. So it is not credible.”
“Secondly, if it was only a humanitarian gesture even if done secretly, you could have been given the benefit of doubt. That you have done a humanitarian activity… there must have been some reason you have done it surreptitiously. But then your husband and your daughter are Lalit Modi’s legal counsel and are helping him… they are helping a criminal escape… So on one side mataji (mother) and on the other side family… On one side money and on the other side permission… Mataji, parivar, paisa, permission… I want to place before you this”
Rahul also revealed that at one occasion, Swaraj had reached out to him to make peace with him. According to him, the foreign minister had said, ” She held my hand and asked ‘Beta why are you angry with me?’ I said I was not angry with her. I looked her in her eyes when I said why I was raising this issue. She lowered her gaze.”
On Wednesday, Sushma Swaraj once again defended herself by saying that Lalit Modi was not an absconder and she had only helped