In a scathing response to the Enforcement Directorate’s actions against Rajasthan Congress leaders, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot accused the BJP-led Union government of obstructing the Congress’ pledges, especially those benefiting women, farmers, and the less privileged, just ahead of the upcoming Assembly polls.

Mr. Gehlot expressed serious concern over the credibility of central agencies, stating that they have created a disconcerting environment in the country, transcending individual cases. “This issue extends beyond my son or the state Congress president. They have sown fear across the nation,” he asserted.

The Chief Minister highlighted the unannounced raid on the state Congress president, Govind Singh Dotasra, by the Enforcement Directorate. He emphasized the political gravity of this move, underlining Dotasra’s dedicated service to the Congress.

Reacting to the summons issued to his son, Vaibhav Gehlot, the Rajasthan Chief Minister criticized it, saying, “Is this a jest?” He further clarified that Vaibhav has no involvement in foreign exchange transactions.

Remarking on the Congress’s response to these actions, Mr. Gehlot declared that the party remains unwavering and unafraid. He confidently predicted that this would work to the detriment of the BJP.

These developments come in the wake of the Enforcement Directorate’s search of the residences of state Congress chief Govind Singh Dotasra and Congress MLA Om Prakash Hudla in connection with the Rajasthan paper leak case. Additionally, Mr. Gehlot’s son,

Vaibhav, was summoned in relation to an alleged violation of foreign exchange regulations.

In a recent Hindi post on an undisclosed platform, Chief Minister Gehlot connected the dots, saying, “On 25/10/23, Congress announced welfare guarantees for the women of Rajasthan. On 26/10/23, the ED raided Rajasthan Congress president Govind Singh Ji Dotasra and summoned my son Vaibhav Gehlot before them.”

He concluded by asserting, “Now, it becomes evident that the ED’s actions in Rajasthan are a result of the BJP’s reluctance to see the women, farmers, and underprivileged of Rajasthan benefit from Congress’s promises.”

The Rajasthan Chief Minister went on to reiterate the two key guarantees that the Congress intends to provide if elected to power: the distribution of cooking gas cylinders to over a crore families for ₹500 and an annual honorarium of ₹10,000 for the woman heading each family.

The Congress high command also strongly criticized the BJP’s actions through the Enforcement Directorate. Party chief Mallikarjun Kharge accused the ED, CBI, and Income Tax Department of becoming the BJP’s primary tools during election times.

He likened them to the BJP’s ‘panna pramukh,’ a critical part of the BJP’s election strategy involving a door-to-door approach to engage with voters. Mr. Kharge concluded by lambasting the Modi government’s authoritarianism, asserting that it poses a serious threat to democracy. He assured that the Congress would continue to battle against the misuse of government agencies and that the public would respond strongly to the BJP’s actions.