Rahul a serial offender, loose cannon: Thakur

NEW DELHI: Rahul Gandhi is a serial offender and a loose cannon, information and broadcasting minister Anurag Thakur said on Tuesday, while referring to the Congress functionary's controversial remarks on 'Modi' surname that led to his disqualification from Parliament.
Speaking at the 'Times Network India Digital Fest', Thakur slammed Congress's "obsession" with the Gandhi family and alleged that the party prioritises the Gandhis over the nation. He also said though Rahul is not the first MP to lose his membership of the House, Congress has held the Parliament of India "hostage" with its protests.
The minister alleged Rahul insulted India on a global platform by calling it 'a Union of States' and not a 'Nation'.
Thakur said: "Rahul Gandhi is a serial offender, a loose cannon. He says whatever he feels like. He has several other cases against him for mudslinging at people and organisations without any proof. He has seven cases of defamation against him and he is on bail. By saying 'Saare Modi Chor hain', he insulted the entire community." He added that despite tendering a written apology to the Supreme Court, Rahul continued to defame communities, people and organisations like the RSS.
Slamming 'selective action against RaGa' claims, Thakur said: "Since 2013, 12 ministers lost their Parliament membership due to their involvement in a criminal offence. But Congress prioritises only a family over the country's judiciary, people and Parliament proceedings."
With Congress and other opposition parties pressing ahead for a JPC probe into the Adani issue and upping the ante by hitting the streets in protest, Thakur said neither the government nor the Lok Sabha secretariat had any role to play in the former Congress president's disqualification from the lower House. Citing the Representation of the People (RP) Act, Thakur said Rahul was disqualified the moment he was sentenced to a two-year jail term in a criminal defamation case.
He raised questions over why eminent Congress politicians and lawyers had not pitched in to help Rahul in the defamation case. "Was it deliberate? Is there a conspiracy within the Congress? It is surprising that an entire battery of lawyers came to the rescue of Pawan Khera within an hour. Why did the Congress leaders not move court in support of Rahul Gandhi? This is a big question," Thakur said, adding: "Who are these people who hatched the conspiracy against Rahul Gandhi."