ED ‘insiders’ tell me raid being planned, waiting with open arms: Rahul

New Delhi, Aug 2 (PTI) Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Friday claimed that an Enforcement Directorate raid is being planned against him after his ‘chakravyuh’ speech in Parliament.

The BJP dismissed his claim saying he is creating a new narrative to distract people from asking about his accountability as the MP from Wayanad following the devastating landslide tragedy there.

In a post on X early Friday, Gandhi said, “Apparently, 2 in 1 didn’t like my Chakravyuh speech. ED insiders’ tell me a raid is being planned.”

“Waiting with open arms @dir_ed ..Chai and biscuits on me,” he said.

In another development, Congress MP Manickam Tagore submitted a notice to move an adjournment motion on “the BJP government’s misuse of agencies like the ED, CBI, and Income Tax for political harassment”.

“The opposition condemns the BJP government’s misuse of agencies like the ED, CBI, and Income Tax for political harassment. Despite their reduced number from 303 to 240 seats and the reliance on alliances with TDP and JDU, the government continues to deploy these agencies to intimidate opposition leaders and force compliance, undermining democratic principles. This misuse of state power is unacceptable and threatens the integrity of our institutions,” the notice read.

Reacting to Gandhi’s claim, BJP leader and former Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar said the former Congress chief might have been told that people are asking questions about his accountability so he has sought to create a new narrative.

However, several Congress and opposition leaders rallied behind Gandhi and accused the government of “misusing” probe agencies.

Rashtriya Loktantrik Party and Nagaur MP Hanuman Ramdev Beniwal said Gandhi was right and probe agencies are being misused by the Centre.

“Two CMs were in jail and it is well know they try and shut up any person who speaks against them. They can get an ED raid done or send CBI in order to defame a person. But if agencies are misused in this manner, the opposition is in a position of strength this time. So I don’t think they will commit the mistake of sending ED against Rahul Gandhi but if they do, the consequences will not be good,” he said.

Independent MP Pappu Yadav said the tendency of the government and ED is to scare people but Gandhi does not have an iota of fear in him.

AAP MP Sanjay Singh said the government’s intention of putting ED and CBI against Gandhi could be because of him exposing the government inside Parliament.

“ED and CBI are working as agencies to throttle the voice of the opposition and bring down governments. I would tell Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he should understand that times have changes, he has reached 240 and if he continues like this, he would reach even 24 and two,” Singh told reporters.

Several Congress leaders accused the BJP of misusing government agencies and asserted that Gandhi is not the one to get scared by such tactics.

Using the ‘chakravyuh’ metaphor as a leitmotif, Gandhi on Monday had claimed that an atmosphere of fear prevails all around with a group of six trapping the entire country in a ‘chakravyuh’ he promised would be broken by the INDIA bloc.

Participating in the debate in the Lok Sabha on Budget 2024-25, Gandhi had said the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) will ensure that a legal guarantee for MSP as well as a caste census is passed by the House.

Thousands of years ago in Haryana’s Kurukshetra, six people killed a youth, Abhimanyu, in a ‘chakravyuh’, he had said, adding that a ‘chakravyuh’ has violence and fear.

Gandhi’s reference was to the Mahabharata legend according to which Abhimanyu was killed in a ‘chakravyuh’. ‘Chakravyuh’ refers to a multi-layered military formation aimed at trapping a warrior by opponents placed strategically in an alignment resembling a lotus-shaped labyrinth.

He had said the ‘chakravyuh’ is also called a ‘padmavyuh’ for its resemblance to a lotus (BJP’s election symbol) formation.