The Congress on Friday targeted the BJP-led Centre over an alleged scam involving a Chinese national and demanded the government come out with a white paper on the allegations that he "duped" 1,200 people in Gujarat of Rs 1,400 crore using a betting app.
Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera alleged the government is using probe agencies like the Enforcement Directorate, CBI and the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) to target Opposition leaders but not against Chinese scamsters who "loot" Indians and flee the country.
He claimed Woo Uyanbe used the football betting app to dupe 1,200 people in Gujarat of a whopping Rs 1,400 crore in just nine days and fled the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Home Minister Amit Shah could not stop him, he said.
Khera also claimed the police in the BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh "promoted" the 'Dani Data App', thereby helping it earn the trust of common people before it was realised the app was a scam.
He displayed some pictures available on social media where the Uttar Pradesh Police is purportedly seen posing with the 'Dani Data App'-sponsored 'Love Donation' banners.
Khera claimed the Chinese techie stayed in India in 2020-22 and created the fake football betting app using which he swindled crores from the ordinary people of Gujarat -- mostly from Banaskantha and Patan -- and parts of Uttar Pradesh before escaping from India.
"Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah are using the ED, CBI, SFIO etc to target Opposition leaders, but not Chinese scamsters who loot Indians and flee the country," he told reporters at a press conference.
"We demand that the government come out with a white paper to bring out the truth and ascertain how many people have been duped and who is the scamster linked to," Khera said.
The Congress leader also alleged that successive escapes of Vijay Mallya, Lalit Modi, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi and now the Chinese national prove duped "the Modi government is not a guardian of 'public money' but a 'travel agency' facilitating 'fraud, fleece and fly to foreign shores'." Khera also claimed the Gujarat police till December 2022 had received 1,088 complaints and over 3,600 complaints on helpline 1930 from people who have been cheated.
Mahatma Gandhi's Gujarat is becoming a hub of betting scams and ponzi schemes, but the double-engine government has displayed woeful 'Double Indifference' to the plight of Gujaratis who fell prey to these schemes, Kheral alleged. The Congress leader said merely banning Chinese apps would not do and demanded "concrete action".
"Why couldn't the EOW (Economic Offences Wing), SFIO, ED, CBI, DRI (Department of Revenue Intelligence) and immigration agencies apprehend the Chinese national before fleeing India or (catch) his digital deception? Why was the Modi government asleep at the wheel while hundreds of people were looted by the Dani Data App and were posting their plight on social media," he asked.
"Why are precious resources of ED, CBI, SFIO, DRI etc. not utilised to prevent such scams, and instead being weaponised against political opponents? Is that the only agenda of PM Modi and HM Amit Shah?" Khera asked.
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