Jayanthi mouthing lines of her political bosses: Cong

Jayanthi mouthing lines of her political bosses: Cong

FPJ BureauUpdated: Saturday, June 01, 2019, 04:18 AM IST
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New Delhi :  The Congress on Friday raised questions about the timing of Jayanthi Natarajan’s resignation and asserted that she was only trying to save her own skin, as there were serious corruption charges that had led to her removal from the then UPA Government.

Congress spokesman Abhishek Manu Singhavi asserted at the AICC press briefing that she was acting at the behest of her new “political masters” who may have some evidence against her.

He also said she was trying to spice up the Delhi elections as the “ground is slipping from beneath the feet” of those who had coined the phrase “Jayanthi tax.” (The Jayanthi tax barb was made by none other than Narendra Modi during the Lok Sabha elections.)

The Congress party closed its ranks within hours of her resignation, rallying behind Rahul Gandhi and dismissing as “completely baseless” the allegations of his interference in the working of the Environment Ministry and accused her of having “ulterior motives.” Several party leaders issued hard-hitting statements against their former colleague.

The Congress party further claimed that she had been removed from the ministry in December 2013 because of serious allegations against her.

Asked why then no case was registered against her by the UPA Government, Singhvi sought to draw a distinction between provable allegations and serious allegations. “Maybe her new political masters have got some evidence which is being used to pressurize her,” he said.

Jairam Ramesh, who was Jayanthi Natarajan’s immediate predecessor in the Environment Ministry, said her allegations against Gandhi were “not just completely unfair but also preposterously baseless.” In a statement, he said, “As Natarajan’s immediate predecessor for slightly over 25 months, I can say with all honesty that at no point of time did Rahul Gandhi ever tell me, directly or indirectly, what to do or what not to do in the discharge of my ministerial responsibilities.”

Rubbishing the allegations, M Veerappa Moily, who succeeded Natarajan in the Ministry, said Rahul Gandhi had never interfered in the functioning of the   ministry. He also said that neither Rahul nor Sonia Gandhi had any greed for power and that is why they had remained out of government. “Soniaji could have become the Prime Minister thrice… Rahul ji also could have become the Prime Minister anytime,” he said, adding both, however, chose to remain away from government.

Congress spokesman P C Chacko, seeking to puncture Jayanthi’s charges, wondered why she did not raise the issue in the party fora for the past one year in spite of several opportunities.

Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh said, “Neither Sonia Gandhi nor Rahul Gandhi have ever interfered in any government matter. If they wanted to do such a thing, they would have become Minister or Prime Minister. All this talk is meaningless.”

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