National Herald case: Govt dares Rahul to prove ‘100% vendetta’

The NDA government on Wednesday dared Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi to give proof in Parliament on his allegations of political vendetta against the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) in the National Herald case.

Prove it instead of wasting time of the House, the government said after Gandhi alleged that the case is “100% political vendetta coming out of the PMO”.

Union minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy said the Congress leader “did not have enough courage” to speak in Parliament on the issue.

“He is instrumental in disrupting the House. Court has taken some cognisance against him and Sonia Gandhi. They are trying to become a hero … We should ask Rahul Gandhi, if he has courage, if he has honesty, if he has standing as a leader of his political party, he should come to Parliament and give proof of the statement he has made against the judiciary.”

“The proof of the statement he has made against the government and the PMO ... he should come and give an explanation in the House and the proof of what he is talking,” Rudy said.

Read | 100% political vendetta coming out of PMO: Rahul on Herald case

His senior colleague Nitin Gadkari asked the Congress to resolve the matter in court, saying the government and Parliament have nothing to do with it.

“The House or government has nothing got to do with this either directly or indirectly. It’s a court decision. Wasting Parliament’s time is not good for democracy,” he told reporters outside Parliament.

“Neither Parliament nor the government has any right to change the court’s decision.”

Watch | Rahul Gandhi says Herald case is ‘100 percent vendetta from PMO’

Another Union minister, Rajyavardhan Rathore, called the Congress’s accusation of political vendetta an attack on the judiciary.

“Who does not know which party has been doing the politics of vendetta for the past so many years. And if they are saying vendetta, that means Congress is blaming the judiciary,” Rathore said.

Congress leaders, including party president Sonia Gandhi and son Rahul, have been summoned by a Delhi court on December 19 on a complaint by the BJP’s Subramanian Swamy against them for alleged cheating and misappropriation of funds in taking control of the defunct National Herald newspaper.

“Every citizen has right to accuse anyone and whether that accusation is right or wrong, is a court matter. Just because somebody is a BJP member, it does not mean he does not have the same rights,” Rathore said.

Read | Parliament logjam continues, BJP decries Cong’s ‘mobocracy’