Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Saturday used the silence of the central government on the Adani issue to take a dig at the ruling BJP’s call to the states going to the polls in the Northeast this month to have a double engine government for speedy all-round development.

Responding to a reporter’s query on the BJP’s call to the people of Meghalaya to vote for a double engine government in the state after the release of the Congress’ manifesto for the February 27 Meghalaya Assembly polls, Congress’ communications chief Ramesh brought up the silence of the BJP-led Centreon the charges of manipulation levelled against the Adani group by the US-based Hindenburg Research.

Opposition parties have been demanding a joint parliamentary committee probe into the allegations that have seen the shares of Adani companies take a severe beating in the stock market. Public sector entities LIC and SBI have invested in the Adani group.

Ramesh said: “BJP says to the states have a double engine government in the states...double engine government in Guwahati (Assam), double engine government in Shillong (Meghalaya), double engine government in Agartala(Tripura) while it itself has a double engine government in Delhi... you know what I mean? That double-engine government is under grave threat of being derailed because one of the engines is under attack, one of the engines has been found to be a fraudulent engine!”

Referring to the Adani group, he adds, “And this whole Modi-Adani affair will give out the truth of how Mr (Gautam) Adani has benefitted from the Modi regime. How all airports have been privatised in favour of Mr Adani, how all ports have been privatised in favour of Mr Adani ... Take whichever economic activity Mr Adani is the prime beneficiary and the prime minister does not even mention in his Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha addresses this severe crisis that we are going through because of this manipulation of this one engine which is driving the Central government.”