The Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) has continued to target Rahul Gandhi for his speech in London on the state of Indian democracy. Anurag Thakur, Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports of India, on Tuesday, demanded Congress MP’s apology in the lower house for allegedly insulting the nation overseas. “Rahul Gandhi trips overseas and insults the nation. He should come to the house and apologise to the country. He says that he is not allowed to speak in Parliament, on the other hand, his presence in Lok Sabha is lower than the average attendance of MPs in the Parliament,” Minister said ahead of the ongoing Budget session. 

The Union Minister also alleged that the Congress knows the ‘art of corruption and corruption through art.’ Anurag Thakur further added, “They are continuously running a campaign against the nation. Stop Cambridge cries and London lies, come here and carry out a ‘kshama yatra’ (apologise to people of the country),”. Anurag Thakur, Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting, has criticised the Congress party for their alleged involvement in a bribery scandal that was highlighted in the report by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). The report indicates that a former CEO of an Indian bank had purchased overpriced artworks from a “close relative” of the Congress party member in exchange for national awards. However, the report did not mention the CEO by name. 

He stated that there is a continued unveiling of different examples of corruption within Congress, such as the National Herald and Vadra land scam among others. The latest revelation involves a case study published by FATF, which describes how a former Union Minister in the UPA government tenure coerced someone into purchasing Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s mediocre painting for Rs. 2 crores. 

Rahul Gandhi made some claims during a recent event at Chatham House in London, stating that the microphone of opposition leaders in Parliament is frequently muted. He criticised  them for various wrongdoing. Additionally, the Congress leader expressed concern that multiple institutions in the country are facing threats from the current government. He also called the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) a ‘fundamentalist’ and ‘fascist’ organisation alleging that it has captured pretty much all of India’s prime institutions.