Troubles don’t seem to end for the Congress. A massive controversy has erupted after former finance minister P Chidambaram’s image with a Taliban leader surfaced on Monday
The senior Congress leader was photographed sitting in the room where Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Zaeef was also present, raising a doubt whether Chidambaram met and had a conversation with the Taliban leader. The photograph was captured in 2013 when P Chidambaram was the Union Finance Minister.
Chidambaram seen with Taliban leader
This image which has gone viral again was posted by the now Union Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in 2013 when she was a spokesperson of the BJP.
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Zaeef then was in Goa to deliver a lecture and the event was attended by the former minister as well. The BJP has questioned the senior Congress leader as to why he did not leave the venue immediately when he realised the Taliban leader was present there.
“The Congress has been following a negative comment in Gujarat and otherwise by constantly attacking the Prime Minister personally. On national security matters, they have created a strange situation. When a photograph like this comes, it becomes critical for them to come out and explain. Chidambaram has to explain why he was present in the room,” BJP spokesperson Nalin Kohli told Times Now.
This development comes days after reports that Jignesh Mevani, whom the Congress is supporting in the Gujarat state assembly elections, received a cheque from the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI).
Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday stated that it was “suspicious” that Pakistan released a statement after Prime Minister Narendra Modi questioned former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar for meeting with Pakistan High Commissioner Sohail Mahmood.
The BJP’s retort came in response to Pakistan’s response to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, where Pakistan’s Foreign Office asked that they be kept out of India’s electoral debates.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi raised doubts over Pakistan’s interference in the state assembly elections in Gujarat.
PM blamed Pakistan; but Indira Gandhi started it first
But Prasad dismissed Pakistan’s allegations stating that India does not need any lessons from them when it comes to elections.
“Pakistan’s Foreign Office has released a very curious statement today. They stated that Indians must fight elections on their own.
India’s Prime Minister is a popularly elected leader. Pakistan should stop giving us lessons. We completely abhor any outside interference in India’s electoral affairs,” Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said while addressing the media.
Earlier BJP Claimed, Adding fuel to the fire caused by the ‘neech aadmi’ comment controversy, senior BJP leader Ajay Aggarwal made an explosive claim of a proof of a secret meeting between Pakistan Government’s envoy, former PM Manmohan Singh and suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, reported ANI.
As per the report, Ajay Aggarwal alleged that on 6th December evening, a meeting took place at Mani Shankar Aiyar’s residence where Pak envoy, Former PM Manmohan Singh, Former VP Hamid Ansari & some Congress leaders were present.
Aggarwal also claimed that there was a huge deployment at Mani Shankar Aiyar’s resident and the road was blocked.
“The very next day, Mani Shankar Aiyar made a statement terming the Prime Minister as ‘neech’,” Agrawal said.
The BJP leader added that the meeting might be a strategy planned by the Congress. “What transpired I don’t know but the very next day he made the ‘Neech Aadmi’ comment for PM Narendra Modi. It may be for the polarisation of votes, their strategy, what conspired, the nation must come to know about it”, Aggarwal said.
Senior Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar on Thursday afternoon had started a new war by calling Prime Minister Narendra Modi ‘neech’ and ill-mannered.
While talking to media about the Ambedkar International Centre that was inaugurated by PM Modi earlier that day, Aiyar said that there was no need to do cheap politics on the occasion.
“Ye aadmi bahut neech kisam ka aadmi hai, is mein koi sabhyata nahi hai, aur aise mauke par is kisam ki gandi rajniti karne ki kya avashyakta hai?” he had asked.
This remark came in response to PM Modi’s statement earlier that day where he had hit out at Congress by saying that parties seeking votes in BR Ambedkar’s name tried to erase his contribution in nation building and did little to build the Ambedkar International Centre conceived 23 years ago.
Retorting to Aiyar, PM Modi said Congress leaders were speaking in a language that was not acceptable in a democracy.
However, after Aiyar’s outrageous speech, the Congress distanced itself from the controversy that followed afterwards.
In fact, the Congress later suspended him from its primary membership and the A K Antony-headed disciplinary action committee issued him a show-cause notice. Rahul Gandhi had also disapproved of his remark and told him to apologise to the Prime Minister.
