Sibal received award funded by Epstein in 2010, Rahul should respond: BJP
New Delhi (PTI): The BJP alleged on Saturday that former Union minister Kapil Sibal received an award funded by convicted American sex offender Jeffrey Epstein at an event in the US in 2010 and demanded a response on the issue from Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
Asked about the allegation, Sibal dismissed it as "rubbish". The Congress too rejected the charge, asserting that Sibal was not Epstein's guest at the event.
Sibal was the Union minister for human resource development at the time. He was given an award at the event for his "resolute support of global collaboration in education", Congress's media and publicity department head Pawan Khera said, adding, "Completely unrelated to Jeffrey Epstein".
In a post on X, BJP national spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari said, "In 2010, an award reportedly funded by Jeffrey Epstein was received by senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal, a figure long seen as close to the Gandhi family."
ALSO READ: Bangladesh inviting Modi, other regional leaders for Tarique Rahman's swearing-in ceremony
Sam Pitroda, Congress's overseas department head, too was associated with the "same circles", Bhandari alleged.
He posted on X a document, which purportedly had Sibal's name on the list of awardees, alongside other dignitaries, including Pitroda, at the 2010 International Awards Gala that was organised in New York.
"Soon after that period, several policy shifts were witnessed during the then Congress-led government," the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said.
"Were these coincidences, or did external influence of Epstein attempt to shape decisions of Congress govt. Rahul Gandhi should answer!" he said, adding, "Epstein -- Congress Government's Valentine!"
Sibal quit the Congress in 2022. He is currently an Independent member of the Rajya Sabha, backed by the Samajwadi Party.
BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla also targeted the Congress over the issue.
"What kind of Congress' 'mohabbat ki dukan' was going on with Epstein? Why did Kapil Sibal accept an award from Epstein-funded IIE?" he asked in a post on X.
"Rahul Gandhi likes to speak a lot in Parliament, right? Will he say something about this now?" Poonawalla added.
Hitting back at the saffron party, Khera said, "BJP's Pradeep Bhandari and Shehzad Poonawalla are trying to peddle the claim that Kapil Sibal appears in the Jeffrey Epstein files."
"Much to their disappointment, he does not. In the process, they have only exposed their astonishing inability to read the very document they are selectively posting screenshots from," the Congress leader said in a post on X.
He claimed that the file that the BJP leaders are "waving around" was originally sent by Margaux Rogers to Epstein's personal assistant, Lesley Groff, on September 10, 2010, and Groff had then forwarded it to Epstein the same day.
"In other words, it was a compiled list of major public events happening in New York -- events Epstein may have wanted to track. Why? Because that's what he did. He was a predator who kept a watch on elite spaces and influential people," Khera said.
"It's a 59-page document -- listing events ranging from conferences to fashion shows. Kapil Sibal's name appears on page 55 -- under an Institute of International Education event," he added.
"But the BJP propagandists didn't bother reading that far. They saw the name, got excited, and rushed to manufacture a narrative -- hoping to drag the opposition into this mess and distract from the questions surrounding their own disgrace, Hardeep Singh Puri," the Congress leader said.
The Congress has been demanding Union minister Puri's resignation after his name appeared in the "Epstein files" released in the United States.
Participating in a debate on the Union Budget in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, Gandhi, the leader of opposition, alleged that the India-US interim trade deal is a "wholesale surrender", with India's energy security handed over to the US and farmers' interests compromised.
He also alleged that Indian interests have been "surrendered" under the deal to protect the BJP's financial architecture.
Talking to reporters outside the new Parliament building, the former Congress chief further claimed that the names of Puri and industrialist Anil Ambani figured in the "Epstein files".
Addressing a press conference later, Puri slammed Gandhi for "passing innuendo" against him, clarifying that he had met Epstein on a "few occasions", but his interactions with him had nothing to do with the crimes the convicted sex offender was involved in.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Delhi: Father, son held for killing 19-year-old woman in suspected honour killing
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi Police has arrested a man and his son for allegedly murdering his 19-year-old daughter in west Delhi's Hari Nagar area, an official said on Friday.
The case first came to light on April 1 after a PCR call was received around 2 pm, alleging that a woman had been killed by her family members and her body was being taken for last rites, he said.
The accused, identified as Mohammad Maneer (55), a vegetable vendor, and his son Meraj Ali (19), were arrested in connection with the case, the officer said.
The victim had been in a relationship with a man from her native place for the past two years, which was opposed by her father, Maneer and brother Meraj, he said.
"When the girl did not end the relationship despite objections, the family killed her," the officer said.
On April 1, the police said that when their team reached the spot, they found that the woman's body was being taken for burial.
Acting on the input, the burial process was stopped over suspicion of honour killing.
"Police intercepted the family members and took possession of the body," he said.
Police said that the man who had made the PCR told them that the woman was in love with his cousin.
During the inquiry, police also interacted with the PCR caller, who said his cousin, a friend of the deceased, had informed him about the situation and suspected foul play, prompting him to alert the police control room.
The body of the woman was subsequently shifted to the mortuary of Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital for preservation and postmortem.
Police said that both the crime team and the forensic science laboratory (FSL) team were called to inspect the scene and collect evidence.
Police said that, as per the postmortem report, the cause of death was identified as smothering, indicating that the woman was suffocated.
A preliminary inquiry also revealed that the family had initiated preparations for the last rites soon after the woman's death, raising suspicion about the circumstances.
Initial investigation pointed to the family's opposition to the woman's relationship.
"The family members of the woman saw her with the man, and she was taken back home. We got to know that she was beaten up and even locked inside the house for some days," a source said.
Further investigation into the matter is underway, police added.
