By Arun Pratap Singh
Dehradun 22 Mar: State Congress President Karan Mahara held a press conference at Congress Bhawan here, today, where he accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of indulging in “massive corruption” through electoral bonds. He also accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi Government of freezing the bank accounts of the Congress party with the intention of disrupting its campaign for the Lok Sabha elections.
Mahara further accused the BJP of going to the polls not on the basis of the achievements of its Government but by misusing various institutions like the CBI and Enforcement Directorate. The PCC Chief said that the elections for the 18th Lok Sabha have been announced. Fair elections are necessary for democracy but the BJP has been adopting unfair practices in order to win. He said that the massive scam that was done by BJP through the Electoral Bond scheme could come out in full detail only because of the orders of the Supreme Court. He asserted that, for fair elections in a democracy, there is need for equal opportunities for all political parties. Monopoly of one party should not prevail. The bank accounts of the Congress party had been frozen in order to prevent Congress from fighting the elections on an equal footing.
Questioning the penalty levied by the Income Tax Department on the Congress, Mahara claimed that it is perplexing to witness how a 106 percent penalty was imposed to create obstacles for the Congress Party in contesting elections against all the rules and regulations.
Karan Mahara said that, in the case of the alleged irregularity of Rs 14.40 lakh related to Congress Party, the Income Tax Department has imposed 106 percent penalty (Rs 210 crore) whereas as per the rules, the penalty on this can be a maximum amount of Rs 10 thousand. Not only this, the Income Tax Department has also forcibly transferred Rs 115 crore from the bank accounts. He said that this matter is related to the income tax return of FY 2018-2019. Congress had to give information related to its account to the Income Tax Department by 31 December 2019. He claimed that the Congress submitted the returns only 40 to 45 days late, which is not unusual. The benefit of the exemption policy should have been given to Congress also, but the Income Tax Department has sought recovery of Rs 210 crore from Congress as penalty. A game is being played to stop the Congress party from having resources to contest the Lok Sabha elections. In the election year 2018-19, Congress spent Rs 199 crores. Out of that, an amount of Rs 14.40 lakh (only 0.07 percent) was deposited by Congress MPs and MLAs as their share of salary. This money was deposited in cash. The Income Tax Department has imposed a penalty of Rs 210 crore on Congress due to receipt of money in cash.
Karan Mahara said that, today, only BJP’s advertisements are visible everywhere, the monopoly is clearly evident. BJP has “five star” offices everywhere. There is no account of the government’s election expenses. He claimed that the BJP wants accounts and accountability only from the Opposition parties. BJP never pays tax, but demands it from others. Those in power should not have a monopoly on resources.
He emphasised that those in power should not have control over agencies like ED, CBI, IT. Congress party demands that its accounts be restored as freezing them is completely undemocratic. He said that this type of action taken at the behest of the Central Government is an attack on India’s democracy. Thirty-year old cases are being investigated to prevent the Congress candidates from contesting elections. The Congress party its unable to utilise Rs 285 crores deposited in its bank accounts. The notice for the year 1994-95 was sent to the Congress Party and an amount of Rs 115 crores was forcibly transferred from the accounts of the party by the Income Tax officials from the banks. Congress is raising questions on the timing of this notice.
Mahara claimed that a systematic effort is being made by the Prime Minister to weaken the Congress financially. He said that the BJP and Prime Minister Modi want to win the Lok Sabha elections not on the basis of their 10 years’ achievements but by misusing the power of the country’s constitutional institutions. During these 10 years of tenure, the Prime Minister only spoke his mind and did nothing else toward welfare of the people. The public has now understood and will never allow BJP’s plans to be fulfilled for the third time around.
