Union Minister Smriti Irani (Photo | EPS)
NEW DELHI: A remark on the ongoing turmoil in Gautam Adani-led group’s affair by globally-renowned hedge fund manager George Soros has triggered a political slugfest in India with the BJP on Friday accusing Soros of plotting against the ‘democratic system’ of India and’ ‘democratically-elected government’.
The ruling party at the Centre also charged principal opposition party Congress of peddling the agenda of Soros. The billionaire investor has recently opined that the turmoil being created in India after the Hindenburg report on Adani group companies will weaken the PM Narendra Modi-led government.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference on Thursday, Soros had said Modi would “have to answer questions” from foreign investors and Parliament on allegations the Adani Group is facing. He had also said that the turmoil at Adani may open the door to a democratic revival in the country. He went on to say “India is an interesting case. It’s a democracy, but its leader Narendra Modi is no democrat”.
Going ballistic against George Soros, the BJP declared the Soros’s statements a kind of ‘declaration to destroy India’s democratic processes. Stepping up attacks on Soros, Union minister Smriti Irani described him (Soros) an ‘economic war criminal’ nurturing ill-intentions against India.
“He has not targeted only Prime Minister Narendra Modi, but also the Indian democratic system. This war is being mounted against India and what stands between the war and India’s interests is Modi”, Smriti Irani alleged at a media briefing here. Accusing Soros of plotting against India, the minister further alleged that Soros wants “hand-picked” people to run the government.
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“As a citizen, I call upon every individual and organisations to denounce the intentions of such individual, who has expressed his ill-intentions to weaken our democratic system,” Irani said, and hoped that people will again defeat such foreign elements.
She lashed out at Soros saying that at a time when India has become the fifth largest economy and receiving gratitude by global leaders like the president of the USA, and the PM of UK for enabling employment not only in India but also in these three nations, such imperialist intentions of an entrepreneur has exposed a plot against India. She also accused him of attempting to support to have a pliable government in India to his needs for making his nefarious plans successful.
Divergent views emerge in Cong
The divergent views in Congress regarding the comments of billionaire investor George Soros on Adani, was palpable on Friday as Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh and Praveen Chakravarty took contrarian views on the issue. Congress chose to distance itself from the comments, saying that India’s electoral process has nothing to do with George Soros. In a tweet, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, “Whether the PM-linked Adani Group scam sparks a democratic revival in India depends entirely on the Congress, Opposition parties and our electoral process. It has nothing to do with George Soros,” said.
