Rahul Gandhi Has Ties With 'Undesirable Businessmen': Former Congress Veteran Ghulam Nabi Azad

Former Congress veteran Ghulam Nabi Azad on Sunday (9 April) alleged that Rahul Gandhi has links with “undesirable businessmen”.

In response to Rahul’s tweet attacking Azad and few other leaders, Azad claimed in an interview with Malayalam news channel Asianet News that the Gandhi family, including Rahul, has associations with businessmen, including those who are deemed “undesirable”.

Azad even went so far as to say that he could provide at least 10 examples of where Rahul would go, even to other countries, to meet with such businessmen.

"Their entire family has, all along, had an association with businessmen. That includes him (Rahul Gandhi). I have a great respect for the family. I can give you ten examples of where he would go and meet -- even outside the country -- to meet people who are undesirable businessmen," said Azad in the interview to Asianet News.

Azad had severed his association with Congress in August last year and created his own party, Democratic Progressive Azad Party.

In a tweet on Saturday (8 April), Rahul Gandhi criticised certain leaders who left the Congress in the past few years, and some of them who joined the Bharatiya Janata Party, while continuing his attack on the government regarding the Adani matter.

"They hide the truth, that's why they mislead everyday! The question remains the same - whose Rs 20,000 crore benami money is in Adani's companies?" Gandhi asked in a tweet in Hindi, sharing an image with 'Adani' written as an acronym of sorts with letters of the names of the leaders including Ghulam Nabi Azad, Himanta Biswa Sarma, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Anil Antony and Kiran Reddy.

Azad said there’s no Congress party left in India and only a few individuals remain. The current Congress leadership, including Rahul, has no influence, he said, reports Times of India.

"Lots of people say that Rahul Gandhi's clout has increased after the Bharat Jodo Yatra. I was also under that impression like many in the country. But during the past 10 days, I realised he has zero clout," Azad said.

He said that when Indira Gandhi was disqualified and jailed in 1978, within a few hours over a lakh people went to jail.

"Ten lakh people were waiting outside the jail because there was no space in the jail. Ten thousand people accompanied me and took a protest march to Parliament," he said.

"Now, Rahul Gandhi, immediately after the Bharat Jodo Yatra, is disqualified and jailed, not even a mosquito has cried or come onto the road. He had to go to Surat court accompanied by working committee members from Delhi, MPs from Delhi and MLAs from Gujarat," Azad said.

"Not a single youth or farmer from Gujarat joined," he added.

Azad said the younger generation is 10 times more frustrated with the leadership and that’s why Congress veteran AK Antony’s son Anil quit the party recently.

“Anil’s exit is unfortunate. Most young leaders, aged below 50, have left Congress because of Rahul’s lack of leadership and direction,” he said.

"Most young leaders below 50 have left the Congress. It is not a question of one or two. From each state, I can count at least four-five dozen leaders, and most of those who left were part of Rahul Gandhi's team. They left because of the lack of leadership and direction from Rahul Gandhi," Azad said.