Rahul aide involved in AgustaWestland, CWG scams, alleged BJP

The BJP on Tuesday accused Kanishka Singh, an aide to Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, of being involved in the AgustaWestland and 2010 Commonwealth Games (CWG) scams.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Kirit Somaiya accused Kanishka Singh of having shares in Emaar MGF Land Ltd., a real estate company that also has Guido Ralph Haschke, one of the accused in the AgustaWestland case, as its director.

"Hashke is/was the Director in Emaar MGF, who was found involved in CWG scam. Emaar MGF company was formed by family of Mr. Kanishka Singh, who is advisor/Principal Secretary to Shri Rahul Gandhi," Somaiya tweeted.

Somaiya also appealed to the CBI and Enforcement Directorate to

"check the connections of AgustaWestland Helicopters and Common Wealth Games, EmarMGF company, Kanishka Singh to Rahul Gandhi."

Asked about Somaiya's allegations, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi accused the BJP government of targetting him. "I was always targetted and I am happy to be targeted," he told reporters.

Meanwhile, Kanishka Singh described "all the allegations as baseless, false and given with an ulterior political motive".

"Somaiya has been making these false allegations about Kanishka Singh with malafide intent since February 2013. Kanishka Singh rejects these allegations in their entirety," the Congress said in a statement.

"In so far as Kanishka Singh is concerned, he has absolutely nothing to do with the matter. Singh wishes for parties, including AgustaWestland or Hashke or Emaar-MGF, to be punished in the harshest possible way if found guilty," the statement said.

"Kanishka Singh has nothing to do with (it) and has been on estranged terms with the Rajiv Gupta family (Emaar-MGF) who, though related, fell out in 2005 when Rajiv Gupta propounded a Will of Ved Prakash Gupta which Kanishka Singh and his mother say is a case of forgery and fabrication, and the matter has been pending in court since then," it added.

The Congress described the allegations as preposterous propaganda by the BJP.

"Vitriolic of BJP government and its multiple leaders to propagate conspiratorial falsehood everyday appears to have reached an extreme. Latest instance is the completely preposterous and baseless allegations of BJP MP Kirit Somaiya against Kanishka Singh," party spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said in a statement.

"We want to remind the BJP that Modi government is in power for last two years."

"Instead of relying upon friendly media leaks, insinuations, innuendos and falsehood, BJP government should conclude the inquiry and give the harshest punishment to those found guilty of any allegation of bribery in AugustaWestland case," Surjewala added.

--IANS

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