Rahul Gandhi denounces electoral bonds as the 'world's biggest extortion racket' during his address in Thane, while Mallikarjun Kharge demands a probe into BJP's finances.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi criticised the electoral bonds scheme during his speech in Thane as part of his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. He described it as 'the biggest extortion racket in the world,' alleging that funds from these bonds were used to destabilise political parties and overthrow opposition governments. Gandhi emphasised that there was no link between the contracts awarded by Congress state governments and electoral bonds.
Gandhi stated, “Electoral bonds was the biggest extortion racket in the world… Funds for splitting political parties and toppling opposition governments came from electoral bonds.”
Gandhi also accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of using agencies like the ED, CBI, and the election commission as its 'weapons.' He warned that action would be taken against such misuse once the BJP government changes.
“The institution of the country whether it is ED, Election Commission of India or CBI, now they are not the institution of the country but the weapons of BJP and RSS,” Gandhi remarked.
Gandhi added, "If these institutions had done their work, this would have not happened. They (BJP) should think about this one day when the BJP government changes, then action will be taken and the action will be such that these things will not repeat again, I guarantee..."
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge called for a special investigation into the electoral bonds scheme and demanded freezing of BJP's bank accounts until the probe concludes. Kharge highlighted the involvement of dubious donors and criticised the BJP's claim of not engaging in corruption, citing Supreme Court data revealing significant donations to the BJP compared to Congress.
“The Prime Minister says 'Na khaunga, na khane dunga (Will not eat, will not let others eat)', but today it has been exposed by the Supreme Court how the BJP has made money out of electoral bonds. SBI data shows BJP got 50 per cent donations and Congress got only 11 per cent,” Kharge remarked.