Arun Jaitely threatened me: Jaitely’s son trashes Rahul Gandhi's claim
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New Delhi: The Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi has come under fire for accusing former Union Minister and BJP leader Arun Jaitley of threatening him for participating in the farmers protest in 2020.
Among other BJP leaders, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju and Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan termed Rahul Gandhi’s remarks ‘irresponsible’ and ‘hateful’.
Rahul Gandhi was speaking at the Congress' annual legal conclave at Vigyan Bhawan when he claimed that Arun Jaitely threatened him.
Rahul Gandhi said: ‘I remember when I was fighting the farm laws -- he's not here anymore so really I shouldn't say it but I will -- Arun Jaitleyji was sent to me to threaten me and he said, 'if you carry on down this path, opposing the government, fighting us on the farm laws, we will have to act against you'. I looked at him and said, I don't think you know who you are talking to, I don't think you have an idea who you are talking to’.
Responding to Rahul Gandhi, Jaitely’s son Rohan Jaitely said that his father passed away in 2019 but the farm laws were introduced in 2020, further adding he said it was not in his father’s nature to threaten anybody over an opposing view.
‘He was a staunch democrat and always believed in building consensus. If at all such a situation were to occur, as it often does in politics, he would invite free and open discussions to arrive at a mutually acceptable solution for all. That was simply who he was, and that remains his legacy today’, Rohan Jaitely added.
Taking to social media platform X, Rijiju asked how Arun Jaitely who died on 24 August 2019 could meet Rahul Gandhi over the farm bills introduced in Lok Sabha on 14th Sept 2020.
Alongside terming Rahul Gandhi’s remarks ‘despicable’, Minister Sitharaman said ‘If irresponsibility has a face, it is @RahulGandhi, Leader of Opposition in LS. To throw baseless allegations at people in public life, even those who are no longer with us, is becoming a personality trait in him. His remarks on late Shri. Arun Jaitley is despicable. India needs a strong opposition party. An irresponsible leadership hurts his party @INCIndia and the country. But does he care?’
Education Minister Pradhan came down heavily on Rahul Gandhi saying that the leader of Opposition has ‘completely shredded all standards of decorum in public life’.
However, senior Congress leader Pawan Khera throwing his weight behind Rahul Gandhi said ‘What matters is not who conveyed the threat, but on whose behalf was it being conveyed’.
