NEW DELHI: Janata Party chief Subramanian Swamy on Saturday said that he will file a plea before the Election Commission seeking derecognition of the Congress party.
Subramanian Swamy tweeted on Saturday morning: “Based on Congi confession of the loan crime yesterday I am filing a Petition today before ECI seeking De-recognition of Congi party.”
Battle over Swamy’s allegations against Gandhi family heightened on Friday, when he stuck to his allegations and challenged Rahul Gandhi to move court with a defamation case as threatened by the latter in response to the charges.
On Friday, the Congress had said that it had provided interest-free loans to the ailing company that ran National Herald without any commercial profits.
While Congress accepted that had provided interest-free loans to Associated Journals Pvt Ltd (AJPL), which owns National Herald and Quami Awaz, it said the move was only part of its political activities. “It is a matter of pride for the Indian National Congress that it has supported the Associated Journals Ltd, publisher of National Herald and other newspapers founded by Jawaharlal Nehru in 1937, which have played a role in our freedom movement. Congress has done its duty in supporting AJPL to help initiate a process to bring the newspaper back to health in compliance with the laws of the land,” said Janardan Dwivedi, Congress general secretary.
Swamy on Friday accepted Rahul’s threat to move court, raising the prospect of a heightened battle between the Congress’s first family and the Janata Party president, with the BJP too endorsing Swamy’s claims. “My advice to Rahul Gandhi is to grow up and go to the court and file a defamation case,” Swamy said on Friday. “I will fight you there,” he said.
Swamy said he has not read the letters sent by Rahul’s lawyer and his office on Thursday. “I have not read either of those letters. I have thrown them in my dustbin.”
Swamy’s belligerent stand came a day after he accused Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Rahul of floating a private company for nonprofit and taking over the assets worth Rs 1,600 crore of now-defunct National Herald newspaper, by committing a few lakh rupees. He also accused Rahul of not disclosing his shareholding in Associated Journals, which was founded by Jawaharlal Nehru.
Swamy accused Young Indian, a Section 25 company floated by the Gandhis, of illegally letting out two floors of Herald House here to the ministry of external affairs’ passport division. Congress leader Abhishek Singhvi said the nature, manner and timing of the allegations clearly substitute sensation for sense and superficiality for substance. “Those making the allegations seem to be joining the season for making irresponsible charges on completely non-issues,” Singhvi said.
On Friday, Congress spokesman P C Chacko challenged Swamy to move court if he was convinced of his charges instead of adopting hit-and-run tactics. (PTI)