Shortly after the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha were adjourned for the day, the Congress on Monday said the government was "scared" of the Adani issue and did not want to discuss it while the INDIA bloc parties were seeking a Joint Parliamentary Committee investigation into the "scam".
The Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha were adjourned without transacting any significant business on Monday amid uproar by opposition members on various issues, prominently the Adani matter.
Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said, "The Modani issue rocked both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha today. INDIA parties called for a Joint Parliamentary Committee investigation into the Modani scam -- the case for which has been reinforced by the recent indictments of Adani's bribery and suppression of information from Indian and American regulators." Congress general secretary in-charge organisation KC Venugopal alleged that the government was "scared" of discussing the Adani issue.
"They don't even want to hear one word from the opposition on this issue. We moved adjournment motions… within a second they adjourned the House because they are totally scared of facing the issue," Venugopal told PTI Videos.
"They don't want us to raise this issue at all. At least the explantation must be given to the opposition. We will continue our agitations," he said.
Deputy Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Pramod Tiwari said opposition parties had proposed at the all-party meeting that the bribery charges against the Adani Group be discussed.
"The bribery charge is on Adani but the BJP is feeling the pinch. The government did not agree to a discussion. The leader of opposition asked why the matter was not being taken up, why the issue couldn't be discussed. This shows the government does not want to discuss the matter," he said.
With billionaire Gautam Adani charged in the US with alleged bribery and fraud, the Congress has said it "vindicates" its demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee investigation into the various "scams" involving his conglomerate.
The Adani Group's indictment in the US last week gave fresh ammunition to opposition parties to demand a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the business group's dealings. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had sought Adani's immediate arrest.
Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Telegraph Online staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.