‘House doesn’t belong to him’: Smriti Irani on bungalow eviction notice to Rahul Gandhi

Union minister Smriti Irani hit out at Rahul Gandhi over the official residence eviction notice issued to him after he was disqualified from Lok Sabha.

“The house does not belong to him, it belongs to the common people,” Irani said at a press conference.

Gandhi has been asked to vacate his 12 Tughlaq Lane bungalow by April 22, which he has been occupying since 2005, days after he stood disqualified after being convicted in a defamation case over his ‘Modi surname’ remark. According to the rule, a disqualified parliamentarian isn’t entitled to government accommodation and is given a 30-day period to vacate the official bungalow.

While addressing a press conference, Irani also fired a fresh salvo at the former MP and stated that Gandhi’s promise to a magazine editor to rip Modi’s image apart is a promise that shall remain unfulfilled because PM Modi’s greatest strength is the people of India.

Speaking further, the union minister said, “This is not the first time Gandhi family has tried to insult people from Dalit or backward communities. When a woman from the tribal family became the President, even then Droupadi Murmu was insulted by a Congress member on the instructions of Gandhi family”.

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge hit out at the government, saying, “They will make all attempts to weaken him (Rahul Gandhi) but, if he vacates the bungalow, he will go live with his mother or he can come to me… I’ll vacate one.”

Congress general secretary KC Venugopal said, “Rahul Gandhi is not worried about the house. Whatever the government of India is doing with the country’s democracy is a bigger issue, that is what he told. Every Opposition party is together, we had a cordial discussion and we will move forward with the same energy.”

Veteran Congress leader Harish Rawat said the party is not surprised that Gandhi has given the notice to vacate the bungalow. “Since Rahul Gandhi questioned the PM regarding the Adani issue, the government is trying to show that it will silence the voice that disagrees with them,”