GST goes for skywalk as Gandhis stoop to conquer

Faced with an awkward situation where two of its top leaders, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, will have to appear in a lower court to explain their position on allegations of inappropriate conduct in the National Herald case, the Congress has taken to the good old “playing the victim” approach.

It is not just the president and the vice-president of the party – a lot of senior Congress leaders have recently been inconvenienced by government-led probes and cases. They raised placards and shouted slogans, alleging it to be a complete case of “political vendetta” by the Central Government. Her son Rahul also saw “political vendetta” in the case. This is not going to happen. Whatever allegations they want to level against me, they can do. “I am going to put pressure on the government and will continue to do my job”. I am not afraid of these things. “I feel bad about it”, she said, but added, “However, it is court’s decision and I will not comment about it”.

Shahid Siddiqui says if Congress is a victim, let it not make a victim out of the country – don’t stall GST or Parliament.

Senior advocates Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Harin Raval and Ramesh Gupta appeared for the Gandhis and the other accused and moved pleas seeking exemption from personal appearance for their clients for Tuesday only.

The simmering crisis assumed dimensions of a full-blown political clash when Sonia invoked her mother-in-law to tell reporters, “I am the daughter-in-law of Indira Gandhi”. I’m not scared of anything. Sonia Gandhi’s statement – “I am Indira Gandhi’s daughter-in-law”. There were reports that the paper was being revived under journalist Suman Dubey, technocrat Sam Pitroda and the newly incorporated, Sonia Gandhi-owned Young India Company headquartered at Herald House. Even functioning of Parliament in the remaining days of the Winter Session looked bleak after the AICC accused the Modi government of “using” Subramanian Swamy – BJP leader and petitioner in the case – as a “tool to wage a “proxy war” against the Congress leadership and said the issue, “shall be fought both politically and legally”. They can challenge the orders in a higher court or face proceedings, he told media. Countering the Congress charge, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley made it clear that the Congress better get ready to deal with their legal battles in courts and not in the Parliament.

“Parliament, normally, doesn’t decide the guilt or innocence; this is to be determined by the court”. On December 28, 2010, AJL had assigned this debt to Young Indian Ltd (YIL), a section 25 charitable company, for Rs. 50 lakh.

The Government does not have the numbers to get the legislation through the Rajya Sabha and needs the support of the Congress to get the constitutional amendment passed in it.

“All parties must come together (on GST)”, Jaitley told broadcaster Times Now. GST Bill is a work in progress. “Anybody who tries to create hurdles in passing that GST will be doing great damage to this country”.