Amidst US Secretary of State Marco Rubio's India visit, Congress leaders have expressed concerns over Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri's alleged ties with convicted American sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
During his India visit, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has been in the limelight for a different reason. A purported photo of Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri meeting convicted American sex offender Jeffrey Epstein resurfaced and was widely shared on social media on Tuesday. This photo was part of a set of documents released by the US Department of Justice in January detailing the activities of Epstein and his social circle that included politicians, celebrities, and public figures.
The email exchanges between Puri and Epstein began in June 2014, as mentioned in the documents. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday, questioned which 'anti-national traitor' the US is 'blackmailing'. He also accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its parent organization, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, of remaining silent on the issue.
Congress leader KC Venugopal alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi 'did nothing despite knowing fully well' about Puri and Epstein’s close ties. He claimed that Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s 'complete silence and inaction' pointed towards ‘their criminal indifference' to the allegations against Puri.
Venugopal also asked whether 'these revelations' will have any effect on the India-US trade deal and urged Modi to speak on the matter. He accused the Modi government of trying to allegedly cover up 'dark deeds' by 'trading away' the country’s economic and geopolitical interests.
Congress leader Pawan Khera asked whose ‘dark deeds’ the Modi government was trying to allegedly cover up by ‘trading away’ the country’s economic and geopolitical interests. The Aam Aadmi Party also accused Puri of lying about meeting Epstein as part of a delegation. They questioned what Puri was doing with Epstein and demanded answers.
On February 11, Puri had said that he met Epstein on ‘a few occasions’, but those meetings had nothing to do with Epstein’s crimes. He had said that after resigning as India’s ambassador to the United Nations, he joined the International Peace Institute. He was the secretary general of the independent commission on multilateralism set up by the International Peace Institute.
Puri's Rajya Sabha term will end on November 25 and he was not re-nominated by the BJP for the Upper House election on October 16. He became a Rajya Sabha member in January 2018, four months after becoming a Union minister.
Source:
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