On 13th December, Newslaundry came out in support of Congress’s Rajya Sabha MP from Jharkhand, Dhiraj Prasad Sahu, who is at the centre of a multi-hundred crore IT raid. In a video of “Tippani”, the propaganda portal tried to whitewash the crime of storing unaccounted cash and projected that the allegations against Sahu were not yet proven. Newslaundry insinuated that the money recovered could be “legal” and asserted that media houses targeted Sahu without knowing the reality of the money recovered.
In an almost 26-minute video, under their section ‘Tippani’ (comment in English), Newslaundry’s Atul Chaurasia ranted against the central government and mainstream media for targeting Sahu. The video was mainly about Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader and expelled MP Mahua Moitra.
‘It is unclear if the money was black’
Chaurasia said that till now, only the money has been recovered. The investigation into the cash recovered is yet to begin. “No one knows if the money was ‘right’ or ‘wrong’.” He claimed that though it is unclear if the money was black or white, the mainstream media and BJP supporters have started targetting Sahu. He questioned how only recovery of money can be claimed as a guarantee of a crime. He also targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi for using emojis in his post on X on the matter.
He then equated the matter with the video of BJP leader Narendra Singh Tomar’s son Devendra Singh Tomar, where it was claimed that he was talking about receiving large amounts of funds. The said video surfaced days after Assembly elections in five states. Following the video went viral on social media, Devendra immediately filed a police complaint saying that it was a fake video.
Devendra’s complaint said, “A viral video has surfaced where it is falsely claimed that I have conducted transactions worth crores. This doctored video is part of a conspiracy to malign me and create a negative impression. Fake video clips are being circulated on various social media platforms maliciously to damage my public image and reputation.” Notably, Narendra Tomar contested the Madhya Pradesh Assembly elections from the Dimni constituency and defeated Congress’s Ravindra Singh Tomay by 48,000 votes. Following the elections, the matter related to Devendra’s alleged video went into a cold bag, and the opposition forgot about it.
Interestingly, Sahu or his associates have yet to release any statement. Congress has distanced itself from the controversy and demanded an explanation from Sahu about the recovered cash. While Congress does not want to associate itself with the recovered cash, for some reason, left-liberal media and “intellectuals” like Raghuram Rajan are defending Sahu. In a recent comment, Rajan claimed the opposition parties have to use cash as electoral bonds provide an uneven playing field to the political parties and favour the ruling party. He further claimed that money could be for election purposes and insinuated that the ruling party carried out raids using agencies to recover such money.
Newslaundry defender Mahua Moitra
In the video, Newslaundry also defended Mahua Moitra in the cash-for-query case. Chaurasia claimed Moitra was dismissed from Lok Sabha without any chance to explain herself. He completely forgot that the Ethics Committee called her to present her point of view, which she stormed out when questions were asked. Furthermore, Moitra admitted to leaking her Lok Sabha credentials so that questions could be posted on her behalf.
Interestingly, Newslaundry claimed that Mahua Moitra was expelled because she raised questions against Gautam Adani. However, Chaurasia forgot to point out that most of Moitra’s questions against Adani directly or indirectly favour Darshan Hiranandani, who admitted to paying her kickbacks for the same! Chaurasia claimed that the statement given by Hiranandani was only on a “piece of white paper”. He conveniently ignored the fact that it was an affidavit submitted by Hiranandani to the Indian Embassy in Dubai. The affidavit contained the seal of India’s vice consulate general in Dubai, Urmil Asiwal. She reportedly said that the documents were signed in her presence, and the person, who in this case was Hiranandani, was identified by his passport. The passport number was mentioned in the affidavit. The document was signed on 20th October. Details of the affidavit can be seen here.
Chaurasia equated the expulsion of Moitra to the suspension of Rahul Gandhi from Lok Sabha. He claimed both were shown way out of the Lok Sabha because they questioned Gautam Adani. However, Gandhi was removed from Lok Sabha over a defamation case. He, however, has returned to Lok Sabha, thanks to the Supreme Court of India, which stayed his disqualification in August this year. On the other hand, Moitra was expelled from Lok Sabha for unethical behaviour.
Notably, the credentials she shared are not only for posting questions. But using her credentials, whoever accessed the account had access to documents not in public view, such as bills to be tabled and reports meant for MPs only. Moitra indulged in a serious breach of the country’s security by sharing the credentials.
Who is Dhiraj Prasad Sahu?
Dhiraj Prasad Sahu is a Rajya Sabha MP for Congress from Jharkhand. His family has been associated with the Congress party since independence. He became RS MP in by-polls in 2009 for the first time. In 2010, he was elected as RS MP for the second time; in 2018, he was re-elected for RS by Congress for the third time. He actively participates in parliamentary proceedings. Sahu was part of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra. In recent raids at Odisha-based Boudh Distillery Pvt Ltd, where Dhiraj Prasad Sahu is a partner, the Income Tax Department recovered over 300 cr of unaccounted cash. Congress Party has distanced itself from the controversy, while BJP leaders, including PM Modi, have targeted Congress.
