Congress Leaders to Hold Press Conferences in 57 Cities to Counter BJP's Claims in National Herald Case

Congress leaders are set to hold press conferences nationwide from April 21 to 24. The aim is to counter the BJP's claims in the National Herald case, according to Pawan Khera, head of Congress's media and publicity department. He described the National Herald as a symbol of the freedom struggle. This move comes as the party seeks to counteract the BJP's increasing attacks following the Enforcement Directorate's charges against Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

Congress has been actively protesting these allegations, with demonstrations held across India last week. On Saturday, party general secretaries and state in-charges gathered in Delhi to strategise against what they call politically motivated accusations. The party insists that its leadership has committed no crime in this case and plans to hold press conferences nationwide from Monday to Thursday to challenge the BJP's narrative.

Press Conferences Nationwide

P Chidambaram will address a press conference in Delhi, while Shashi Tharoor will speak in Lakshadweep. Ashok Gehlot, former Rajasthan chief minister, will be in Shimla, and Gaurav Gogoi will be in Jorhat. Other leaders like Syed Naseer Hussain, Prithviraj Chavan, Manish Tiwari, and Pranav Jha will also hold press conferences in various cities.

Bhupesh Baghel will speak in Bhubaneswar, Kumari Selja in Bhopal, Deependra Hooda in Kochi, Kanhaiya Kumar in Jaipur, Amitabh Dubey in Coimbatore, Tariq Anwar in Lucknow, Rajeev Shukla in Saharanpur, and Alka Lamba in Varanasi. Khera stated on X that Congress leaders are spreading across India to expose BJP's lies and efforts against the National Herald.

Congress's Strategic Response

The Congress party has criticised the Enforcement Directorate's chargesheet as a "lie-sheet," claiming it is not a legal but a political battle. They remain confident of winning against the Union government on issues like the Waqf Amendment Act. The party alleges that BJP is targeting the Supreme Court for advising against laws that contradict the Constitution's basic structure.

In addition to press conferences, Congress plans "Samvidhan Bachao" rallies at state levels from April 25 to 30 and district levels from May 3 to 10. A door-to-door campaign is also planned from May 20 to 30 to spread their message nationwide.

Allegations Against Congress Leaders

The Enforcement Directorate has filed a chargesheet naming Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and others in the National Herald case. They are accused of laundering Rs 988 crore. Allegedly, Congress leaders conspired to acquire properties worth Rs 2,000 crore from Associated Journals Limited by transferring 99% shares to Young Indian for just Rs 50 lakh. Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi are majority shareholders of Young Indian.

The Congress party continues its efforts to counter these allegations through various strategies and public engagements across India.