BJP hiding behind Soros as it needs alibi to save Adani: Congress
New Delhi, Dec 10 (PTI) The Congress on Tuesday alleged that the BJP was "hiding behind" US billionaire George Soros as it needed an alibi to save Gautam Adani and the ruling party leaders were in cahoots with people who run funds backed by Soros.
The opposition party also asked that if Soros is involved in anti-national activities, why is his business running in India and why has the government not sought his extradition.
The Congress' counter-attack came as the BJP kept up its offensive over the issue of alleged links of Congress leaders with Soros-backed outfits that the ruling party claimed were involved in anti-India activities.
"The BJP is relentlessly saving Adani, but the question is why and to what extent will they go for it? You're not letting Parliament function.
"The reality is that the ruling party is obstructing proceedings, asking for adjournments and going to the well of the House," Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said at a press conference at the AICC headquarters.
The Congress has been demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the allegations of irregularities against the Adani Group, including the indictment of its chairman in the US, and has accused the BJP of diverting attention from the issue with its Soros-linked allegations.
"But first, the BJP must answer a few questions. If George Soros is running an anti-India agenda, then why are you not shutting him down? Why are you contributing to the UN Democracy Fund, which actually aids 68 of his projects around the world?" Shrinate said.
"Why have you contributed USD 900,000 in the last 8-10 years, becoming the 4th largest donor, and, most importantly, why are you even a part of such a fund that's giving money to Soros?" she said.
Shrinate alleged that in a way, Prime Minister Narendra Modi "is funding" Soros.
Soros came to India in 1999 when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the prime minister but it was in 2014 that his grant program started, she claimed.
"His Open Society has a Soros Economic Development Fund. It has two big funds, SONG and Aspada, which were actually backed by Soros. It invested money in two big funds: NeoGrowth and Capital Float -- now known as Axio -- was founded by Gaurav Hinduja and Shashank Rishyasringa. These two founders are seemingly very fond of Mr Modi and supported his demonetisation move," she claimed.
"What's shocking is that they were actually funded by George Soros. So, why is the PM sharing the stage with those who are funded by Soros? "But wait, there's more to it. Shashank Rishyasringa is married to the granddaughter of Viren Shah, the former treasurer of the BJP, and was also the Governor of West Bengal when Atal Ji led the government and former BJP president L K Advani and Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis attended the wedding," she said.
These are not some small fund operators and Axio has supported 40,000 businesses across the country and invested USD 300 million in small businesses and startups, she said.
"The question then is, if Soros is running an anti-India agenda, how is money from his funds flowing into Indian startups and businesses? The reality is the BJP has no proof of the silly allegations they have made, and they're hiding behind Soros because they need an alibi to save Adani," she said.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Tuesday accused the Congress and its leadership of colluding with Soros and anti-India forces, triggering noisy protests in the Lok Sabha from the opposition parties that led to the adjournment of the House for the day. PTI
