New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party MP from Pilibhit, Varun Gandhi, has indirectly criticised the Narendra Modi government over the Rs 22,800 crore loan default by former promoter, chairman and managing director of ABG Shipyard Rishi Agarwal.
In a tweet posted Friday, Gandhi mentioned Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi and said that a “mazboot sarkar” (strong government) is expected to take strong action against the “super corrupt system”.
“When about 14 people are committing suicide in the country every day under the burden of debt, the life of such wealth collectors is at the peak of luxury,” he wrote.
विजय माल्या: 9000 करोड़
नीरव मोदी: 14000 करोड़
ऋषि अग्रवाल: 23000 करोड़
आज जब कर्ज के बोझ तले दब कर देश में रोज लगभग 14 लोग आत्महत्या कर रहे हैं, तब ऐसे धन पशुओं का जीवन वैभव के चरम पर है।
इस महा भ्रष्ट व्यवस्था पर एक ‘मजबूत सरकार’ से ‘मजबूत कार्यवाही’ की अपेक्षा की जाती है।
— Varun Gandhi (@varungandhi80) February 18, 2022
Agarwal was questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on the loan default and alleged bank fraud and lookout notices were issued against him and other accused in the case.
On 8 February, Gandhi had criticised the government’s decision to appoint Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit as the vice chancellor of the Jawaharlal Nehru University. Such “mediocre appointments serve to damage our human capital”, he had said on Twitter.
Gandhi has been voicing his opinions on various issues which often include direct or indirect criticism of the ruling BJP government. The BJP, however, has been maintaining silence over his critical tweets and statements.
Speaking to ThePrint, a BJP leader said Varun Gandhi is not that important. “He is a part of the party and he could have his own opinion on issues. But the party has nothing to say on what he writes on Twitter,” the leader said.
A BJP spokesperson whom ThePrint reached out to said he was busy with the ongoing assembly elections and has not seen what Varun Gandhi wrote on Twitter.
Also read: Varun Gandhi refuses to back down, now posts clip of Vajpayee’s 1980 pitch for farmer rights
Statements on economy, agriculture, farmers’ protests
Varun Gandhi has been speaking on issues related to the economy and agriculture too. In January, he had shared a video of a young man, spoke about unemployment and criticised authorities for their handling of last month’s student protests over railway recruitment in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
“Unemployment is emerging as the biggest problem in the country. Situation is becoming dire. Looking away from it is like covering fire with cotton,” he had said.
Gandhi, along with his mother and former Union minister Maneka Gandhi, were dropped from the BJP national committee last year.
According to a BJP leader, Gandhi’s repeated questioning of the leadership for accountability did not go down well with the party. The action was taken after his series of tweets on the Lakhimpur Kheri incident, demanding the arrest of those responsible for the farmers’ deaths.
In September-October 2021, Varun Gandhi had written four letters to the Yogi Adityanath government over the Lahimpur Kheri incident and on the then protesting farmers, saying they should be dealt with patience.
(Edited by Saikat Niyogi)
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