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Updated August 2nd, 2018 at 16:51 IST

"He's BJP's Baby", says Congress dismissing Mehul Choksi's lawyer's 'loose alliance' reveal. But what will Rahul Gandhi say?

The Congress party was thrown into fresh controversy on Thursday after Republic TV broke the sensational revelation by the lawyer of absconding fraud-accused Mehul Choksi in Antigua, who said that his client had a 'loose alliance' with the Rahul Gandhi-led party

Reported by: Ankit Prasad
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The Congress party was thrown into fresh controversy on Thursday after Republic TV broke the sensational revelation by the lawyer of absconding fraud-accused Mehul Choksi in Antigua, who said that his client had a 'loose alliance' with the Rahul Gandhi-led party. The revelation has sent shockwaves through India's political circles with the government and the BJP coming out to ask the Congress to come clean.

WHAT HAS THE CONGRESS SAID SO FAR?

Cornered on the matter, however, the Congress is yet to submit any substantive explanation, especially seeing as this isn't just a political attack but a statement from Choksi's lawyer. Former Uttarakhand CM and senior Congress leader Harish Rawat provided what can said to be the first reaction, saying that:

"Mehul Choksi is BJP's baby. Congress has nothing to do with him. He called PM by his name."

Meanwhile, a Congress ally has come to the party's aid, with the JD(S) saying:

"He (Choksi) ran away during the regime of the BJP and did business in the regime of BJP. We can't ascertain the investigation without proper investigation and facts. Choksi's relationship with BJP or Congress is secondary. He has looted the money of Indians. We expect Modi to bring him back."

It is unknown at the time of publishing whether the Congress will be holding a news conference on the matter and what they would say, though it is clear that an explanation is required as the party has been unrelenting in attacking the BJP over Choksi and Nirav Modi.

WHAT HAD RAHUL GANDHI SAID ABOUT MEHUL CHOKSI EARLIER?

In the immediate aftermath of the fraud coming to light, the Congress had attacked the BJP and the Prime Minister simply because of the shared last names, and since then, Rahul Gandhi, in particular, has made it a point of raising 'Congress's loose ally' Choksi whenever he gets the opportunity:

In Amethi, in April, Rahul Gandhi had said that the 'acche din' the Prime Minister had promised had been ushered in for only 15 persons including Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi. He claimed that PM Modi personally knew Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi and referred to them as Nirav Bhai and Mehul Bhai.

In Mandsaur, in June, Rahul Gandhi had again reiterated that PM Modi calls Mehul Choksi 'Mehul Bhai' and alleged that the PM and BJP weren't concerned about farmers and that helping rich businessmen friends is their only priority.

Also in June, in Goregaon, Rahul Gandhi had spoken about Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi along with Vijay Mallya and Lalit Modi all fleeing the country, going so far as to say that the PM may also do the same.

He has also issued tweets such as this:

WHAT HAS CHOKSI'S LAWYER SAID?

All eyes are now on the Congress president and what he has to say about Choksi's lawyer's statement:

"Well, he has a nephew who also appears to be a person, a scapegoat. The authorities are trying to pin this matter for him. There is a very serious political element that is involved in this whole matter and it is not just a bank that has collapsed. In India, the political climate is heated up in a very serious way. I mean to understand the elections particularly at a national level that are going to be held in early part of next year. Basically, the politicians are in splints right now. They are trying to carry as much popular support as they can and the situation with Mr. Choksi has to be seen in that context".

"He was a businessman. He was an ordinary businessman and he had some loose alliance with what is now known as the opposition party in India, the Congress Party, which is the party that is different from the party of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I believe that his name. So, there is a difference. I also know that he was a regional, a political activist but there was somewhat of a loose alliance that has kind of inflamed the situation".

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Published August 2nd, 2018 at 16:51 IST

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