From Parliament to streets: Congress to hold nationwide protests tomorrow over Adani issue

Congress is set to launch nationwide protests against the ongoing Adani issue in front of Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) offices and State Bank of India (SBI) branches on Monday.

In Delhi, the protests will be held by NSUI-Youth Congress outside the banks located at Parliament police station, while party MPs will protest near the Gandhi statue inside Parliament, reported news agency ANI.

“The govt is hell-bent on helping Modiji’s friends to loot public money. The Congress party has decided to hold a nationwide protest on 6th Feb 2023, in front of LIC & SBI offices. We also demand a JPC probe or a CJI-led enquiry in the humongous Adani scam,” the party said announcing its protest programme.

This comes after the massive uproar in Parliament with the Opposition parties demanding an impartial investigation under the supervision of the Supreme Court or a joint parliamentary committee to probe the charges raised in the Hindenburg report against the Adani Group.

According to the opposition, the meltdown in Adani Group shares is a “scam that involves common people’s money as public sector LIC and SBI have invested in them.”

Earlier in the day, Congress raised three questions about the Hindenburg-Adani row. The party said, “What does the fact that a business entity you are well acquainted with faces serious allegations tell us about the quality and sincerity of your investigations?.”

The other questions included – “What action has been taken, if ever, to investigate the serious allegations made over the years against the Adani Group? Is there any hope of a fair and impartial investigation under you?”, and “How is it possible that one of India’s largest business groups, one that has been allowed to build monopolies in airports and seaports, could have escaped serious scrutiny for so long despite persistent allegations? Other business groups have been harassed and raided for much less. Was the Adani Group essential to a dispensation that has profited from ‘anti-corruption’ rhetoric all these years?”