In an interview with NDTV today, Sharad Pawar, the chief of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), strongly backed the Adani Group and slammed the narrative surrounding Hindenburg’s report on the conglomerate.
The Congress today distanced itself from Maharashtra ally Sharad Pawar’s claim that a report by US short-seller Hindenburg Research on the Adani Group was a “targeted” attack.
In an interview with NDTV today, Mr Pawar, the chief of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), strongly backed the Adani Group and slammed the narrative surrounding Hindenburg’s report on the conglomerate.
The Congress, on the other hand, distanced itself from Mr Pawar’s remarks, claiming that the Adani Group matter, which is allegedly “linked” to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is “real and very serious.”
The Congress is one of many opposition parties calling for a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) investigation into the Adani-Hindenburg dispute, which has stalled parliament sessions.
“The NCP may have a point of view, but 19 other parties are convinced that the PM-linked Adani Group issue is real and serious,” Congress spokesperson Jairam Ramesh said in a statement issued today following Mr Pawar’s interview with NDTV.
“However, all 20 like-minded opposition parties, including the NCP, are united and will work together to protect the Constitution and our democracy from the BJP’s assaults, as well as to defeat the BJP’s divisive and destructive political, social, and economic agenda,” Mr Ramesh said.
The Congress spokesperson excluded Mr Pawar’s party from the list of “19 like-minded parties” who want a JPC probe into the Adani-Hindenburg dispute, but included the NCP in the list of “20 like-minded parties” who will continue to fight the BJP at the national level.
Mr Pawar stated candidly in the interview that he did not agree with his Maharashtra ally’s unwavering demand for a JPC investigation into the Hindenburg report.
“Such statements (on the Adani Group and PM Modi) were made by other people before, and there was a ruckus in parliament for a few days, but this time the issue was given undue importance. The issues that were kept, who kept them, who gave the statement, what is the background. We cannot ignore issues that cause a commotion across the country because the cost is borne by the country’s economy. This appears to have been planned “Mr Pawar stated to NDTV.
The Adani Group has called Hindenburg’s allegations a “calculated attack” on India, its institutions, and its growth story.
