Hindenburg-Adani row: Won't Back Down Till Govt Agrees For Discussion in Parliament, Says Congress

Hindenburg-Adani row: Congress is continuously cornering the government over the issue in Parliament forcing the adjournments of both Houses during the Budget Session. On Monday, both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were adjourned till 2 pm and then for the day.

New Delhi: Congress party has said that it would not "back down" till Prime Minister Narendra Modi agrees to have a discussion on Hindenburg Research`s report against Adani Group in Parliament. "We need PM Modi`s statement on the Adani issue, which has affected the lives of people and lost crores of money. We want a discussion under rule 267. We won`t back down till the PM agrees to have a discussion in Parliament," senior Congress senior leader Digvijay Singh said on Monday.

Congress is continuously cornering the government over the issue in Parliament forcing the adjournments of both Houses during the Budget Session. On Monday, both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were adjourned till 2 pm and then for the day.

This is the third day of the logjam in Parliament over the opposition`s demand for the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC). Congress held nationwide protests outside State Bank of India (SBI) branches and Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) offices on Monday, demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the matter.

In Himachal, the Congress demonstrated in all the district headquarters. In Shimla, Congress protested outside the main branch of SBI and raised slogans against the Adani group and the central government.

The principal Media Advisor to Chief Minister Naresh Chauhan said that crores of people`s money are in SBI and LIC and are on the verge of ending. "This is a huge scam. The Congress party has raised its voice against this and is demanding an inquiry by the sitting judge of the Supreme Court by setting up a JPC. It should be clarified why the BJP government is not conducting its inquiry," Chauhan also said.

He further said that the Central agencies like CBI, ED, and Income tax which are active against anti-Modi leaders are silent today.

In Chhattisgarh, the party leaders staged a protest at Jai Stambh Chowk in Raipur. A large number of Congress office bearers, including state Congress president Mohan Markam and Congress MLA Satnarayan Sharma, participated in the demonstration. Protesters also raised slogans against the central government on the occasion.

Members of Congress in Telangana staged a protest outside the State Bank of India office in Hyderabad over the Adani issue. The Congress also held a protest in Jammu on the same.A video showed protesters clashing with the police, who were raising anti-BJP slogans.

A protest was also held by NSUI (National Students Union of India), the student wing of Congress in Delhi who were demanding a Joint Parliament Committee probe over the Adani row. As part of the Congress party`s nationwide protests, Odisha Congress President Sarat Pattanayak staged a demonstration outside SBI Bank over the Adani issue in Bhubaneswar.

It is being argued by the opposition that the investment of the Adani group in public sector banks such as the SBI and LIC has had a big impact on the savings of the middle class.

Opposition parties on Monday protested near the Gandhi statue outside Parliament and demanded a Joint Parliament Committee investigation or Supreme Court-monitored probe into the Hindenburg-Adani row.

Hindenburg-Adani row

A report by a US-based Hindenburg Research surfaced on January 24, claiming that the Adani Group had weak business fundamentals, and was involved in stock manipulation and accounting fraud, among others. According to the statement, the Adani portfolio and the Adani verticals are focused on bringing India into the global economy and nation-building. In the summary of the long response by Adani Group, it said the report was "nothing but a lie".

The Adani report states that by "holding short positions" in Adani stocks, which, simply put, is betting on the stock falling. Hindenburg exposed its hand as it made huge money with the fall of Adani stocks immediately following the publication of the report on January 24."The document is a malicious combination of selective misinformation and concealed facts relating to baseless and discredited allegations to drive an ulterior motive," the Adani Group`s response said.

The report triggered a sell-off of shares of all Adani Group companies. Although the Congress is getting the support of other opposition parties on the Adani issue, it has to be seen whether the parties such as the Bharat Rashtra Samithi, Aam Aadmi Party and Trinamool Congress, which are seen together in the meetings, will join the Congress demonstration or extend moral support. However, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Janata Dal (Secular) have kept their distance from Congress on this issue.