'PM anti-national, sold interest of nation', alleges Sidhu
New Delhi: Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu Saturday alleged Prime Minister Narendra Modi "ruined" government companies and "favoured" private firms in his five years of rule and accused him of being "anti-national for selling the interest of the nation".
Sidhu also described PM Modi as "nikamma" (useless) and said he should stop harping on the issue of nationalism to garner votes and talk about the matters of national interest.
Addressing a press conference here, the Punjab minister alleged, "Modi is the business development manager of Ambani and Adani, as he has favoured them at the cost of state-run firms."
The Congress has been attacking the prime minister for "promoting crony capitalism and favouring his industrialist friends". The government has, however, denied the charges.
Sidhu also alleged that while SBI and MTNL are accruing losses, PM Modi is endorsing private companies like Paytm and Reliance Jio.
"Adani and Ambani accompanied the prime minister on foreign visits and 18 big projects, which should have ideally been given to government companies, were handed over to them," he claimed.
The Congress leader alleged that the "chowkidar" took care only of the rich and ignored the rest 99 per cent of the population.
"And the prime minister says he's the chowkidar of the nation. He's the chowkidar of the top 1 per cent of the population. He never took chairmen of government companies along with him on his foreign tours. Are government firms not good enough?" Sidhu asked.
The cricketer-turned-politician alleged that under the "chowkidar's" watch, PSUs like Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited turned into loss-making enterprises.
"While BSNL is grappling with a loss of Rs 8,000 cr, the prime minister is endorsing Reliance Jio, which has posted a huge profit. While SBI is reeling under NPAs, Modi can be seen in advertisements of Paytm," he alleged.
"Modi sold the interest of the nation. He's anti-national," Sidhu alleged.
The prime minister should stop harping on the issue of nationalism to garner votes and talk about the matters of national interest, he said.
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ED issues lookout notice against Kolkata Police DCP Shantanu Sinha Biswas
Kolkata (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued a lookout notice against Kolkata Police Deputy Commissioner Shantanu Sinha Biswas in connection with a money laundering case, an official said on Tuesday.
The lookout notice was issued after Biswas evaded multiple summons issued to him by the ED.
The notice has been circulated across airports, railway stations and other transit points to prevent any possible attempt by Biswas to leave India, he said.
"He was served notices to appear before the agency on five occasions, but he did not turn up even once. Given his continued non-cooperation, we suspect he may try to evade the probe by going abroad," the officer told PTI.
The central agency alleged that Biswas failed to comply with multiple summons issued to him during the course of its investigation.
Incidentally, the central agency conducted raids at Biswas's residence during the just-concluded assembly election in the state.
ED officials had carried out raids at his Fern Road residence in Kolkata in connection with a case linked to alleged land grabbing and extortion involving an individual known as 'Sona Pappu'.
A day after the searches, Biswas's two sons, Sayantan and Manish, were summoned to the agency's CGO Complex office, but they too did not appear, sources claimed.
Subsequently, Biswas was also summoned in connection with a sand smuggling case in which allegations of financial irregularities have surfaced against him.
However, instead of appearing in person, his lawyer represented him before the agency, citing prior engagements. In a written communication, Biswas reportedly informed the ED that he was unable to attend due to official commitments.
Despite repeated summons, the officer has not appeared before investigators so far.
"The lookout notice has been issued detailing the allegations against him and to ensure he remains available for questioning," another official said.
