After days of protests against the alleged misuse of the Enforcement Directorate and the Central Bureau of Investigation, the Congress will make it a key theme in its political resolution at the party’s plenary to be held in Raipur from February 24.
The discussions will take place in the backdrop of the ED reopening the National Herald case against former Congress chiefs Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, current president Mallikarjun Kharge and others. The party also announced that it would explore the possibility of a review petition in the Supreme Court to challenge the recent amendments in the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.
On Monday, just days before the plenary session in Raipur, the ED, which investigates financial crimes, searched the premises of some Congress leaders in an ongoing probe of a coal scam. A livid Congress lashed out at the ED and the government and said the federal agency does not probe where it should, but only focuses on opposition parties. Party leader Pawan Khera claimed that 95% of the ED’s raids have taken place against opposition parties.
On Monday, the ED had in a statement claimed that a “massive scam” was taking place in coal transportation in Chhattisgarh under which a cartel of politicians, officers and others was allegedly running a “parallel system of extorting illegal levy”, which is generating about ₹2-3 crore daily.
The enforcement agency arrested nine persons, including state administrative service officer Saumya Chaurasia, businessman Suryakant Tiwari, his uncle Laxmikant Tiwari, Chhattisgarh cadre IAS officer Sameer Vishnoi and coal businessman Sunil Agrawal.
Taking a fresh jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Khera challenged the government to conduct raids on BJP leaders, sharing how investigations on prominent BJP leaders like Suvendu Adhiakri, BS Yediyurappa, Reddy brothers, Narayan Rane, Mukul Roy and Hemanta Biswa Sharma were pending.
“One of the themes in our political resolution is misuse of federal agencies. I can’t pre-empt what will be the outcome of the discussions, but this issue has been highlighted during Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra,” said Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh.
“The Bharat Jodo Yatra was built on three pillars: economic inequality, increasing social polarization and political dictatorship. All these would be major themes in the plenary. During the discussions on these themes, we will cover all important issues,” Ramesh added.
The Congress said the ED raids have failed to intimidate the party and the Bharat Jodo Yatra has transformed politics. “It has shaken this government. The Prime Minister doesn’t unleash the ED where it should be,” said Khera.
Ramesh recalled that 17 political parties have issued a joint statement against the misuse of federal agencies and said the Congress will try to file a review petition in the Supreme Court against the amendments in the money laundering law that gave unbridled power to the ED to search and arrest.