Congress rendered financially handicapped through tax terror: Jairam Ramesh on freezing of party bank accounts

Thane: Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh on Saturday accused the BJP-led government of conducting a "surgical strike" on his party by freezing its bank accounts ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, saying it was rendered "economically handicapped" through "tax terror".

Addressing a press conference as the Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra entered Mumbai from here, he also slammed the Union government's push towards 'One Nation One Election' claiming Prime Minister Narendra Modi's aim was to make it 'One Nation No Election'.

In 2024, the fear is whether democracy will survive in India, Ramesh said.

Ramesh also alleged the ruling party was illegally collecting funds through electoral bonds using fake firms with the agenda of "give donation, take business".

"The BJP is now Bond Janata Party. More startling information will come about electoral bonds," he claimed.

The Congress' main bank accounts were frozen last month over an income tax demand of Rs 210 crore.

"BJP has done a surgical strike on Congress by freezing its bank accounts ahead of the general elections. We have no money to fight polls or prepare our election campaign. Even the money collected through crowd funding cannot be used. Congress has been made economically handicapped through tax terror," Ramesh alleged.

Gandhi's both yatras have been good for the party organisation and the country with thousands of people taking part, he said.

"Rahul Gandhi covered 6,000 km of the country. It is fight of the Rs 6,000 cr electoral bonds of the BJP versus 6,000 km of the Congress. His second yatra started on January 14 near Imphal and is culminating in Mumbai today at the Chaitya Bhoomi, the memorial of Dr B R Ambedkar," he said.

Ramesh described the yatra as an ideological exercise taken out by a political party.

"Our ideological fight will continue. Congress' guarantee is a party's guarantee whereas Modi's guarantee is a threat to the Constitution," he said.

"On December 28 last year, we held a rally in Nagpur with the theme - 'Hai tayyar hum' (We are ready). We are ready to electorally fight the BJP and continue ideological fight with the RSS," he said.

He said more such yatras will be organised in future. Ramesh said it was not right to criticise Congress over its stand on electoral bonds scheme as it was not in a position to award contracts at the national level and also the central probe agencies were not controlled by it.

"If you see the data available now, electoral bonds are used to national level contracts, to threaten corporate houses with probe agencies, to seek bribes after contracts are awarded and to form shell companies, so that no information can be accessed," he charged.

Speaking at the press conference, Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole alleged BJP was behaving as if it had monopoly on religion, citing attacks on the Yatra in Assam.

"The yatra has received huge support in Maharashtra. We have given 25 guarantees for public welfare and all of these will implemented when we come to power. The BJP's guarantees are lies and jumlebaazi," Patole claimed.