Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has fired a shot at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and for the first time, the BJP has had to defend their mascot. Gandhi produced documents seized in an income tax raid on the Sahara Group which indicate that huge sums of money, in crores, were paid to Modi when he was chief minister of Gujarat. The money was paid between October 2013 and February 2014. Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the charges levelled are baseless and made to divert attention from the Augusta Westland probe. In the past, the BJP had got the better of politicians making charges by filing defamation suits. (Gandhi had a case registered against him for claiming that the RSS was behind the assassination of the Mahatma). In this case, Gandhi relied on documents seized by the income tax department and it would be difficult for the BJP to use the judiciary to shut him up.
This is the first allegation of corruption against the Prime Minister since he took oath in 2014. And it has come at a time when he is ostensibly fighting the scourge of black money. The demonetisation process has resulted in hardship of an unprecedented level with those at the lower level bearing the brunt. Resentment against the BJP is brewing and leaders of the BJP and RSS in UP made this clear to party President Amit Shah, who stoutly defended his boss. With the BJP turning a blind eye to the problems, those affected have turned to Gandhi and the Congress to give expression to their pain.
It’s in the midst of this turmoil when many are questioning the logic and wisdom of demonetisation that Gandhi has hurled his accusation. It did not make the ground tremble and one hopes the Congress vice-president has something more explosive, but the accusations have made the BJP shake, at least a little. It is a known fact that political parties take money from corporate houses and the BJP is not above this practice. However, an accusation against Modi is not likely to be accepted without some introspection.
Gandhi’s broadside against Modi has two aims. One is to project himself as the opposite of Modi who adopted the same game plan when he took on Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh. The latter did not miss the opportunity to hit back in the Rajya Sabha where he labelled demonetisation as a blunder. The Congress strategy is dependent on the failure of demonetisation. If it fails, Modi will be seen as the villain and any charge made against him will stick. If he succeeds, then Gandhi will find it more and more difficult to target him. True or false, the charges and the strident stand taken by the vice-president have elevated him in the eyes of the opposition and perhaps, even the nation. All of a sudden he is being taken seriously and it is the BJP that will have to give more convincing answers instead of mocking him.
