New Delhi, April 3 Communist Party of India (CPI) Rajya Sabha member from Kerala, P. Sandosh Kumar, wrote to Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Friday, urging him to take action against top Congress leaders implicated in a First Information Report (FIR) registered at the North Avenue Police Station in New Delhi.
In his letter, Kumar stated that the serious allegations involve a "cash for ticket" scam involving individuals at the highest levels of the Congress leadership.
"These charges have been leveled by a former General Secretary of the Haryana Pradesh Mahila Congress. Individuals named in the FIR include Congress General Secretary (Organisation) K.C. Venugopal, Congress Chief Whip in the Lok Sabha K Suresh, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's Personal Assistant (PA) Sahab Ahmad Khan, and K.C. Venugopal's PA Anas Ali, who are alleged to have been involved in extracting large sums of money in exchange for an Assembly ticket," he added.
He stated that he was compelled to write this letter in response to Rahul Gandhi's campaign against the LDF in Kerala, which he described as untruthful, baseless, and malicious.
"You have made baseless, distasteful, and unsubstantiated allegations against the LDF leadership and the Left parties in general. The Left, across the country, is recognized for its integrity and principled public life, and it would be more appropriate for the Congress to introspect within its own ranks before casting aspersions on others," Kumar added.
The CPI leader also stated that the individuals named in the FIR are not peripheral figures but individuals widely understood to function within the inner circles of the Congress leadership and perceived to be personally close to Rahul Gandhi.
"Similar allegations of "cash for tickets" have also been raised by Congress workers in states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Assam, indicating that this is not an isolated instance but reflective of a deeper and more systemic malaise."
"Furthermore, there are serious and widespread apprehensions regarding the collection and utilization of funds by the Congress in the aftermath of the Chooralmala Mundakkai landslides in Wayanad district of Kerala. Substantial amounts are reported to have been collected from the public and other sources in the name of relief and rehabilitation. However, there remains a concerning lack of transparency regarding the total funds collected, the banks where these funds were deposited, and the manner in which they have been utilized for the benefit of the affected victims."
"Given your (Rahul Gandhi's) direct association with Wayanad as its former Member of Parliament and the current representation of the constituency by Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, it is incumbent upon you to place complete and verifiable details in the public domain to dispel these doubts. You must either take decisive action against those named in the FIR and ensure full transparency and accountability in the utilization of funds collected for landslide victims, or abandon the claim of standing against corruption," Kumar said.
Incidentally, Rahul Gandhi, through his election campaign, has been criticizing the LDF government for its corrupt practices, and with state elections to be held on April 9, where the LDF government is facing an "anti-incumbency" wave, and pre-poll surveys all point to the Congress-led UDF government regaining power.