Nation paid price for BJP’s compulsion to get 'chanda' at all costs: Congress
New Delhi (PTI): The Congress on Thursday alleged that the BJP's compulsion to get donations at all costs saw it go ahead with the electoral bonds scheme without heeding RBI's astute advice, as it claimed that over Rs 430 crore was donated to the ruling party by 33 companies that had negative or near zero profit.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh shared a media report on X which claimed that 33 loss-making firms donated electoral bonds worth Rs 582 crore with 75 per cent going to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
"There are four primary channels of corruption in the Electoral Bond Scam, and with each passing day, more examples emerge to confirm the shocking reality of the corruption which has engulfed this country through Narendra Modi's encouragement," Ramesh alleged.
"An update on the latest revelations on the 'Farzi Companies' who have been donating chanda to the BJP Chanda Do, Dhandha Lo; Theka Lo, Rishvat Do; Hafta Vasuli; Farzi Companies," he said in a post on X.
Ramesh claimed that Rs 434.2 crore was donated to the BJP by 33 companies that had negative or near zero profit after tax in aggregate over seven years (2016-17 to 2022-23).
"The aggregate net losses of these 33 companies were over Rs 1 lakh crore. 16 out of these 33 companies paid zero or negative direct taxes in aggregate," he said.
Most of these 33 companies are likely shell companies built for the purpose of money laundering, Ramesh said.
He also claimed that Rs 601 crore was donated to the BJP by six companies that had positive net profits in aggregate from 2016-17 to 2022-23, but whose electoral bond donations exceeded their aggregate net profit significantly.
These companies were likely acting as fronts for other companies, he alleged.
"When the Electoral Bonds Scheme was first floated by the Modi Sarkar, the RBI raised concerns regarding the high possibility of it being used for money laundering. The BJP's compulsion to get chanda at all costs saw it go ahead with this scheme without heeding this astute advice. The nation has paid the price!" Ramesh said.
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Women BJP MLAs protest against opposition in UP assembly premises
Lucknow (PTI): Women BJP MLAs held a protest in the Vidhan Bhawan complex before the one-day special session of Uttar Pradesh assembly, slamming the opposition for defeating the passage of a bill, which would have led to implementation of the Women's Reservation Law, in the Lok Sabha.
This followed another demonstration by Samajwadi Party MLAs, who alleged that the BJP was misleading public in the name of women's reservation.
The women BJP legislators assembled in front of Chaudhary Charan Singh's statue in the assembly premises, holding banners inscribed with the slogan "Insult to Matrushakti (women's power), India will not tolerate it". The protesting members entered the main hall of Vidhan Bhawan carrying the banners.
Participating in the protest, the state Minister for Women Welfare and Child Development, Baby Rani Maurya, told reporters that all opposition parties, including the Samajwadi Party and the Congress, had opposed the women's reservation, a stance for which they would have to pay a heavy political price.
"On this issue, all of us women stand united. We will ensure that we secure our reservation," she said.
BJP MLA Ketki Singh remarked that their protest represents the collective outrage of millions of women across the state.
Singh asserted that the opposition has betrayed women by creating hurdles in the path of women's reservation. The current demonstration is merely the beginning, and very soon, women from every street, intersection and household will join the protest movement, she said.
Minister Vijaylakshmi Gautam said, "We strongly condemn the despicable act committed by the Samajwadi Party and the Congress in an attempt to hold back 'half the population' (women). Their action was directed against the very bill that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had introduced to empower and strengthen Nari Shakti (women's power), and which he strived to pass expeditiously."
Uttar Pradesh assembly is holding a one-day special session on Thursday. During the session, the government is set to move a censure motion against the opposition parties over their failure to pass the Constitution Amendment Bill, which would have led to implementation of the Women's Reservation Act, in the Lok Sabha.
