Seeking to corner the Congress, the BJP on Tuesday again raised in Parliament the issue of alleged links of Congress leaders with George Soros backed outfits involved in “anti-India” activities, triggering vociferous protests from the opposition which accused the government of stalling proceedings to divert attention from the Adani issue.
As both Houses were adjourned without transacting any major business amid noisy scenes, the Congress blamed the government for the ongoing impasse in Parliament. It alleged that the BJP was “hiding behind” billionaire investor Soros and levelling “silly” allegations to save business tycoon Gautam Adani.
Agitated opposition members who have been accusing Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar of partisan conduct on Tuesday submitted a notice for moving a motion to remove him as Vice President.
As soon as the Rajya Sabha met at noon after the first adjournment, Leader of the House J P Nadda raised the issue of alleged links between the Congress leadership and Soros, claiming that they were conniving to destabilise the country.
This led to an uproar in the House, with opposition members raising slogans against the BJP and the treasury benches demanding answers from the Congress.
This is the first time that the BJP raised the issue in Rajya Sabha in the presence of Congress leader Sonia Gandhi.
The Congress’ Deputy Leader of the House Pramod Tiwari rejected Nadda’s allegations and raised the Adani issue.
As stated by a US attorney, the Adani Group paid Rs 23,000 crore as bribes, he alleged, demanding a discussion on the issue.
In the Lok Sabha, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju accused the Congress and its leadership of colluding with US billionaire Soros and anti-India forces, triggering noisy protests and plunging the Lok Sabha into
chaos after which the House was adjourned for the day.
Speaking during Zero Hour, Rijiju also hit out at Congress leaders for attacking the dignity of Parliament by coming to the House by wearing masks and jackets with caricatures.
Opposition members trooped into the Well as Rijiju made the remarks.
The minister said the Congress leaders’ stalling of Parliament was also depriving other members of the House from raising issues related to their constituencies.
When the House met this morning, Speaker Om Birla disapproved of the repeated disruptions of proceedings over the past few days due to protests by the members.
He said the kind of protests, sloganeering and posters being used are not just undignified but also go against the procedural rules.
“Be it opposition or ruling party members, everyone should maintain dignity and work in such a way that a positive message goes out of this temple of democracy,” Birla said.
He said Question Hour, the first hour of the daily business of the House, is very important and everyone should try and ensure it is held smoothly. After this, Birla started Question Hour.
Immediately, the opposition members were on their feet, seeking to raise their issues.
“You don’t want to run the House? Please allow the House to function normally,” the Speaker said.
The opposition MPs ignored his pleas and Birla adjourned the House till 12 noon.
In the upper house, Nadda alleged that the media portal Organised Crime Corruption and Reporting Project (OCCRP) is an international body that works viciously to destabilise the governments in several countries and hurt their sovereignty.
“We all know that the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha has raised (in the House) whatever the OCCRP has reported and (thereby) became a tool of the external forces to cause instability here,” Nadda charged.
Similarly, the Forum of Democratic Leader of Asia Pacific (FDL-AP), which is co-chaired by the senior-most leadership of the Congress, not only raises questions over the sovereignty of the country but also considers Jammu and Kashmir as a separate state, he said.
Without naming Congress leader Sonia Gandhi, who was present in the House, Nadda questioned her role as the “co-chair of an organisation funded by Soros”.
“To be associated with such organisations and to lead such organisations … co-chaired by the Congress leadership shows that it is a big threat for the internal and external security of the nation,” he said, adding, “George Soros is funding these organisations.”
“I want to know what is the relationship between the Congress party and George Soros and the bodies funded by him,” he said.
People have never forgiven those who work with foreign forces to destabilise the country. Those countries that have tolerated such external powers have suffered later, he warned.
Amid sloganeering from both sides, DMK member Tiruchi Siva said Rule 238 (2) restrains a member from making a personal charge against another member and demanded that Nadda’s remarks be expunged.
Responding to Siva, Nadda said, “I have mentioned the name of the office and not that of any particular person.”
Chairman Dhankhar said he would give a ruling on the issue raised by Siva later.
Soon after, sloganeering from both sides grew louder and the chairman adjourned the House for the day amid the din.
Since last week, the ruling BJP MPs have been raising the issue of alleged nexus between Soros and the Congress posing a threat to national security.
The proceedings of the House were washed out in the first week of the winter session starting November 25 due to protests by opposition members demanding discussion on issues like the indictment of industrialist Gautam Adani in a US court and Sambhal violence.
“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,” Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said at a press conference at the AICC headquarters.
“The reality is that the ruling party is obstructing proceedings, asking for adjournments and going to the well of the House,” she said,
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 alleged.
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
