BJP helping loan defaulters with 'Due, Deceive & Depart' policy: Congress

As Indian banks have technically written off almost Rs 68,000 crore due from top 50 willful defaulters, Congress party, on Tuesday, alleged central Government for helping these defaulters when the entire country is facing the crisis of pandemic.

New Delhi:As Indian banks have technically written off a staggering amount of Rs 68,607 crore due from 50 top wilful defaulters, including absconding diamantaire Mehul Choksi, according to a reply under RTI from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Congress party, on Tuesday, alleged that to support these defaulters, in the current crisis of Coronavirus pandemic, BJP-led Central Government is following the policy of 'Due, Deceive and Depart'.

Congress leader and former president of the party, Rahul Gandhi said in his tweet, "I've asked a direct question during Parliament session that provides me with a list of top 50 willful defaulters of our country. Finance Minister refused to answer. Now RBI has released a list of wilful defaulters who are BJP's 'friends' including Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi. That is why the truth was hidden in Parliament."

Congress Chief Spokesperson, Randeep Surjewala slammed the Government for helping these defaulters when the entire country is facing the crisis of pandemic.

He said, "As per the RTI replied on April 24, RBI has written off Rs 68,607 crores which were due from these defaulters. The Prime Minister cannot evade this question by keeping silent as to how can he justify this move in the current times."

He alleged that the 'Jan-Dhan Gaban Yojana' cannot go without the knowledge of top echelon of government including PM Modi and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

He pointed out that such write-offs have come into light when the Government has ordered to free Dearness Allowances and Dearness Reliefs of Central Government Employees, pensioners and even Army personnel.

Surjewala further explained, "As much as Rs 8,048 crore have been written off for Mehul Choksi and Nirav Modi, while another diamond merchant Jatin Mehta's loan of Rs 6,048 crore, too, have been waived off. So is the case of Kingfisher's Vijay Mallya."

Congress asserted that in the last 5.5 years, the Government has written off Rs 5.10 lakh crore if the default money till September 2019, which has now reached to a level of Rs 6.66 lakh crore.

"But the government is not willing to give an economic package to the states to fight against COVID-19," he added.

Over the matter of killing of two priests in Bulandshahr, in Uttar Pradesh, Surjewala said that the case should not be politicized like the Palghar incident of Maharashtra. He also asked the state government to reveal how many people have been arrested for this case.

He said, "BJP was trying to give a political twist to the killings of two priests in Palghar. We demand that there should be no politics on Bulandshahr matter. Hope the UP Government will tell the country who is responsible for the killings and how many people have been arrested so far."