Congress calls Gautam Adani 'Ring Master Gogo', mocks PM Modi
Congress MPs had on Wednesday sought examining of SEBI and RBI chiefs, officials of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs and other regulatory bodies by a parliamentary panel on finance to ascertain whether there were any failures on their part on the Adani issue
FollowThe Congress party on Thursday continued its assault on the Narendra Modi government for its alleged support to Gautam Adani, whose conglomerate was hit by damning charges by the Hindenburg Research report.Â
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Taking to Twitter, the Congress party posted a video of AICC member Pawan Khera in Hindi, which, when translated, read: A few days back, PM Modi said 'one alone is capable of dealing with all'. But he did not say this for himself but for his friend 'Ring Master Gogo' Gautam Adani. This friend of PM Modi is single-handedly overshadowing the whole of India and the Parliament.'
Congress MPs had on Wednesday sought to examine SEBI and RBI chiefs, officials of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs and other regulatory bodies by a parliamentary panel on finance to ascertain whether there were any failures on their part on the Adani issue. Manish Tewari of the Congress raised the demand during a meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance, but BJP members opposed it, saying the issue was sub-judice.Â
Tewari was supported by party colleagues Gaurav Gogoi and Pramod Tiwari, TMC MP Saugata Roy and BJD's Pinaki Misra and Amar Patnaik during the meeting, sources said, adding that BJP MPs Ravi Shankar Prasad, SS Ahluwalia and Sushil Kumar Modi strongly opposed the demand saying the issue is sub-judice as the Supreme Court is looking into the issue and has set up a committee in this regard.
The sources said Tewari stated that the chiefs of SEBI, RBI and other regulatory agencies were required to be examined to ascertain whether there was any regulatory failure on the Adani group share meltdown on Indian stock markets after the Hindenburg report came out.
Proceedings in both houses of Parliament have remained disrupted since the second leg of the budget session began on Monday. Several opposition MPs have also given notices in both houses to discuss the Adani issue and order a JPC probe into the matter.
On Wednesday, the Congress, along with several other opposition parties, took out a protest march from Parliament House to hand over a complaint to the Enforcement Directorate on the Adani issue. However, they were stopped at Vijay Chowk by the police, who said prohibitory orders under section 144 of the CrPC were in effect in the area.
Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra took to Twitter on Wednesday to share screenshots of a report in The Indian Express which claimed that ELARA India Opportunities Fund (Elara IOF), a venture capital fund managed by Elara Capital, is one of the top four entities registered in Mauritius that holds shares predominantly in Adani Group companies. According to the report, records show that along with the Adani Group, it is a promoter entity in a defence company, Bengaluru-based Alpha Design Technologies Private Limited. This defence company, incorporated in 2003, works closely with ISRO and DRDO and has a Rs 590 crore contract with the Union Ministry of Defence in 2020 to upgrade and digitise the ageing Pechora missile and radar systems, the report said.
Citing the same media report, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said on Twitter, "This is in India's Defence space, a key investor in Adani Group, Mauritius-based Elara IOF, with 96% of its corpus invested in the group till Dec, '22 is also co-owner in a Defence company, the firm works closely with ISRO & DRDO, both jointly hold over 51% stake. Amazing coincidence!"
With PTI Inputs
First abort mission of Gaganyaan, India's first human space flight, in May 2023
