On Tuesday, BJP Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy targeted former Congress president and Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi over his citizenship on a thread on Twitter.
Earlier, Swamy had claimed that Gandhi had declared himself a British citizen and raised queries about his academic qualifications. Swamy had written on Twitter (using his preferred sobriquet for the former Congress president):
“Buddhu has also filed income tax returns in UK during 2004-2006 as a British Citizen as Rahul Gandhi while MP in India!!!!!’ Buddhu citizen likely to be cancelled because he cannot deny his British citizenship now. His tax returns are damning. Ensure BJP Govt returns on May 23 rd”
On Tuesday, he put up what he called a ‘translation of Hindi post by Sushil Kumar Saroagi Jindal’ in which he claimed ‘pappu was caught in his own web’.
Swamy wrote on Twitter: “Pappu caught in his own web. Most people are aware that the Home Ministry has sent a notice to Rahul Gandhi regarding his citizenship.
Why did the Ministry seek this clarification and what is the thought process behind sending the notice? If Rahul Gandhi replies to the Ministry that he was and still is an Indian citizen, the question arises who was the owner of the British property and money in British banks.”
He added: “Firstly, we need to understand that this entire issue is not at all with respect to Rahul Gandhi's citizenship. Confused? The whole issue is in relation to the property owned by Rahul Gandhi in foreign countries. The question of citizenship is only a cover. Then Rahul Gandhi has to say that in order to do business in UK he had to fake a British citizenship but he is Indian citizen.”
Swamy goes on to elucidate that the problem isn’t about his citizenship but more to do with the property he purchases. An Indian who wishes to purchase property abroad has to take permission from the Home Ministry and the External Affairs Ministry, which he claims Rahul didn’t do.
He claims Rahul didn’t do it because ‘black money’ was involved. Swamy writes that Rahul Gandhi is in a Catch-22 situation. If Gandhi claims he is a British citizen, then his Indian citizenship gets cancelled. Swamy also writes:
“If he accepts that he is a British citizen, then his Indian citizenship will get cancelled. On top of this, his MP position would be stripped and he could go to jail for having fooled the country and the Parliament all these years.”
Read his tweets below
