Recovery of cash: Congress says party in 'no way connected with businesses of Dheeraj Sahu'
New Delhi, Dec 10: The Congress on Saturday distanced itself from its Jharkhand Rajya Sabha MP Dheeraj Sahu after the recovery of a huge amount of cash from a liquor company linked to him.
"The Indian National Congress is in no way connected with the businesses of Dheeraj Sahu, MP. Only he can explain, and should explain, how huge amounts of cash have been reportedly unearthed by the income-tax authorities from his properties," AICC general secretary Communications Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.
The Income Tax department recovered over Rs 225 crore cash during a series of raids on an Odisha-based distillery group on charges of tax evasion.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday assured the people that the money looted from the public will be returned.
Taking to X, the Prime Minister said, "The countrymen should look at the pile of these notes and then listen to the honest speeches' of their leaders ..Whatever has been looted from the public, every penny will have to be returned, this is Modi's guarantee."
The prime minister also tagged a Hindi newspaper where the cash recovered by the IT department was shown stacked.
The seizure of cash from some premises linked to Congress MP Dhiraj Prasad Sahu in Income Tax department raids shows how the grand old party has kept the tradition of corruption alive generation after generation, the BJP said on Saturday.
A huge pile of cash has been recovered so far in the searches conducted by the Income Tax department against Odisha-based Boudh Distillery Private Limited and entities linked to it. Premises linked to Sahu were also covered as part of the searches, according to officials.
The seizure amount is expected to reach Rs 290 crore, making it the "highest-ever" black money haul by any agency in a single operation, official sources said Saturday.
At a press conference at the BJP headquarters, party leader and Union minister Meenakashi Lekhi said, "The cash seized from Sahu is the biggest haul of cash that has been seized from corrupt persons so far. This shows how the Congress has spread corruption generation after generation and the tradition of corruption has been kept alive."
"Rs 300 crore recovered from just one Congress leader and counting is still on. Imagine if all the corrupt leaders of Congress are kept together, how many notes will be recovered," she said.
BJP's Jharkhand unit president and former chief minister Babulal Marandi has also demanded the arrest of Congress Rajya Sabha MP.
सांसद धीरज साहू के बिज़नेस से भारतीय राष्ट्रीय कांग्रेस का कोई लेना-देना नहीं है। सिर्फ़ वही बता सकते हैं, और उन्हें यह स्पष्ट करना भी चाहिए, कि कैसे आयकर अधिकारियों द्वारा कथित तौर पर उनके ठिकानों से इतनी बड़ी मात्रा में कैश बरामद किया जा रहा है।
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) December 9, 2023
The Indian National Congress is…
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Karnataka Assembly passes resolution against Centre's Waqf Bill amid BJP walkout
Bengaluru, Mar 19 (PTI): The Karnataka Assembly on Wednesday passed a resolution against the Centre's Waqf (Amendment) Bill amid walkout by the opposition BJP.
The resolution was moved by the Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil.
He said the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), set up to study the amendments to the law, acted "unilaterally and arbitrarily", disregarding the longstanding traditions of Parliament and "failing" to consider the views of the opposition members.
Patil noted that the JPC has recommended specific changes to the Act and submitted a report to Parliament, with the bill now being presented for parliamentary approval.
In response to the JPC’s invitation, various stakeholders, State Waqf Boards, and institutions submitted their opinions.
Despite objections from the Karnataka State Waqf Board and other stakeholders against the amendment, the Centre chose to present the bill unilaterally, which has now been introduced in Parliament, the Minister added.
“The proposed amendment to the Waqf Act encroaches and curtails the executive and legislative powers of the state government. The proposed amendment is against the principles of "Principle of Equity, Equality and Parity". Therefore, the proposed amendment is ultra vires,” Patil said.
“This House unanimously urges the Central Government to take immediate action to respect the unanimous views of the country by immediately withdrawing the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, which contains provisions that violate the fundamental principles of the Constitution."
The BJP MLAs voiced their opposition to the bill and called it "height of appeasement".
“We oppose the resolution. This government favours Pakistan and this is height of Muslim appeasement,” a BJP legislator said.
The opposition leader R Ashoka accused the ruling Congress of "turning a blind eye" to the suffering of farmers whose land records were altered in favour of the Waqf Board.
