Targeted for being part of Gandhi family, will soon join politics: Robert Vadra
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New Delhi (PTI): Robert Vadra, businessman and brother-in-law of Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday claimed he is being targeted by probe agencies as he is part of the Gandhi family and that things would have been different had he been part of the BJP.
Vadra, whose wife Priyanka Gandhi made her electoral debut last year, said he is almost an activist now and will soon join politics as he has been working with people since 1999.
The businessman, who was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for the second straight day on Wednesday in a 2008 Haryana land deal-linked money laundering case, said he is being asked the same questions.
He said all this is being done even after the Haryana government has given him a clean chit in the case.
The 56-year-old Vadra reached the ED office around 11 am accompanied by his wife and Congress MP from Wayanad Priyanka Gandhi. He was allowed to go home for lunch around 1:10 pm. The questioning is expected to continue after the lunch break.
"I am part of the Gandhi family, who always fights for the people. Obviously, the BJP has to go for (target) the Gandhi family and me. They have also charge-sheeted my family -- my mother-in-law Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.
"The more you trouble us, the stronger we become... We will fight anything that comes our way," Vadra told PTI.
He said he and his family are one unit and such instances only strengthen his relationship with his wife.
It is very unfortunate that probe agencies are being "misused" by the government, he said.
"I feel that people don't believe in the agencies anymore because everyone in the country has realised that the ED and other agencies are being misused to put pressure on those who expose the government's wrongdoings. The government is trying to create a divide between Hindus and Muslims. All of this is done to distract from the real issues," he charged.
Vadra said he has become the voice of the people and will continue to fight.
"They can see I have become the voice of the people. I am almost like an activist now. This happened because I responded to the government and continue to fight back against the constant false accusations made against me. The people are with me, I serve them. People would like to see me in politics," he said.
Vadra said he has been campaigning and working for people since 1999.
"If I was to be in politics, I want to make a change. Yes, there will be a time when I will definitely be in politics. And I know that the truth will prevail," he asserted.
"Everybody who is hopeful of becoming a chief minister or wants to join politics is always troubled by agencies unless you join the BJP... No BJP leader or minister will be summoned by the agencies," he claimed.
Vadra said the BJP's Haryana government has given him a clean chit in the case as "no wrongdoing has happened".
"I don't understand what this is about and asking me the same kind of questions. I have answered all these questions in 2019. The case pertains to 2008 and why this delay of 17 years," he said.
The probe against Vadra is linked to a land deal in Haryana's Manesar-Shikohpur (now Sector 83) in Gurugram.
As part of the February 2008 land deal, Skylight Hospitality Pvt Ltd, where Vadra was a director earlier, purchased 3.5 acres of land in Shikohpur from Onkareshwar Properties for Rs 7.5 crore.
A Congress government led by chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda was in power in Haryana at that time.
In September 2012, Skylight Hospitality Pvt Ltd sold this 3.53 acres of land to realty major DLF for Rs 58 crore.
The land deal ran into controversy in October 2012 after IAS officer Ashok Khemka, then posted as the director general of land consolidation and land records-cum-inspector general of registration of Haryana, cancelled the mutation, categorising the transaction as violative of state consolidation Act and some related procedures.
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Heavy rain, hailstorms likely to lash Uttarakhand on Tuesday; IMD issues warning
Dehradun/Pithoragarh (PTI): The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a warning for heavy rain and hailstorms across several districts of Uttarakhand on Tuesday, as temperatures remained markedly below normal in the region.
Heavy rainfall is likely at isolated places in Dehradun, Haridwar, Tehri, Pauri, Nainital, Champawat, and Udham Singh Nagar districts. Most places across all districts are expected to receive light to moderate rain or thunderstorms, while higher reaches are likely to witness snowfall, officials said on Monday.
The weather department warned of thunderstorms accompanied by lightning, hail and intense spells of rain in six districts, including Dehradun and Nainital. Gusty winds with speeds reaching 40-50 kmph are also expected at isolated locations in these areas and other hilly districts.
In the state capital, Dehradun, the sky is forecast to remain partly cloudy with light rain and thunderstorms accompanied by gusty winds of 30-40 kmph.
The maximum and minimum temperatures in the city are expected to hover around 31 degrees Celsius and 19 degrees Celsius, respectively.
Maximum temperatures during the past 24 hours remained markedly below normal in the hills and appreciably below normal in the plains. While no significant change in temperature is expected over the next 2-3 days, the IMD predicts a rise of 3-5 degrees Celsius during the subsequent 3-4 days.
Rainfall was recorded in several areas after 8.30 am today, with Ramnagar receiving 31.5 mm and Nainital recording 26.5 mm. Other areas, including Pithoragarh, Khatima and Champawat, also reported moderate precipitation.
Authorities have stopped a batch of 36 Adi Kailash pilgrims at the Dharchula base camp and placed the high-altitude yatra route on high alert following heavy rains and hailstorms in the district on Monday.
Dharchula SDM Ashish Joshi said the pilgrimage was halted due to adverse weather conditions. The issuance of new inner-line passes has been suspended until the weather normalises.
With 1,700 passes issued so far, pilgrims already at higher camps are being monitored for safety, the official added.
