Hyderabad: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday conducted a nationwide protest demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into allegations of financial irregularities against Adani Group. Party leaders in Delhi, including Gopal Rai, Saurabh Bharadwaj and Durgesh Pathak, demonstrated outside BJP headquarters on Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg. Apart from that, a rally was taken out in Kolkata as well, which started at Wellington Square and culminated at the BJP state headquarters on Muralidhar Sen Street.
Those who took part in the rally alleged that the Adani Group, whose shares are experiencing volatility in the market following the Hindenburg report, has been favoured by the Narendra Modi government in various infrastructure projects. They said that loans were also extended to the group by PSU banks and the LIC, exposing the general public's savings to market volatility.
"We want a thorough probe into the Adani Group's finances and for that, a JPC must be formed," one of the leaders participating in the rally said. The rally dispersed after its leaders addressed the participants near the Calcutta University at College Street, about 500 metres from the BJP state headquarters, a Kolkata Police officer said.
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While in Bengaluru, AAP's state president Prithvi Reddy led a massive protest in front of the BJP state office Jagannath Bhavan, as part of parties nationwide protest. Following the demonstration, party workers were taken into custody. Speaking to the media, Reddy said, ''This country is the mother for all of us, but BJP has sold mother's resources to one man. Our country's coal, gas, electricity, road, water, airport and port have been given to Adani. If this continues, the day will come when they will order us to say 'Jai to Adani' instead of 'Jai Bharat'. Instead of investigating this, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has sided with the businessman."
AAP's central Kashmir youth president Jibran Dar, party workers assembled in Jawahar Nagar area in Srinagar and raised slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and business tycoon Gautam Adani. The protesters alleged that Modi was favouring Adani, but doing nothing for the common man.
Terming it independent India's "biggest scam", senior AAP leader TS Tony said, "In 2014, Adani's assets were worth Rs 37,000 crore. They increased to Rs 59,000 crore in 2018, Rs 2.5 lakh crore in 2020 and Rs 13 lakh crore in 2022." "We are here to bring the BJP's direct link to this scam before the people... the exposed government is running away and not giving answers," he said. (With agency inputs)
