Despite the endorsement of Mr. Arun Jaitley for Mr. Subramaniam Swamy’s allegations about legal violations committed by the Congress party by giving a Rs.90 crore loan to the company that ran the defunct National Herald newspaper, it is unlikely that the Election Commission will acquiesce to Mr. Swamy’s demand that the Congress party be derecognized. Political parties are disallowed to participate in commercial activity. 

Congress leaders argue that the move to revive the newspaper founded by Jawaharlal Nehru before India became independent has no commercial angle but is wholly political. Informally the Election Commission (EC) has expressed to the media its inability to intervene. One source was quoted:

“All that is specified is that funds be used for political activity only. Since there is no clear definition of what constitutes political activity, parties spend the money in whatever way they want and claim they do so as per the spirit of the law.” 

The former Chief Election Commissioner Mr. SY Quraishi disclosed that

“the EC had been asking the government for powers to regulate this.”

After Mr. Swamy rubbished the Congress leaders for advancing an interest free 90-crore loan to the company owning National Herald which reciprocally transferred its controlling shares to Mrs. Sonia Gandhi and Mr. Rahul Gandhi who are directors of the Young Indian company, Congress leaders dared Mr. Swamy to move the court to prove his charges. This response appeared particularly stupid because it was for the Congress to launch defamation proceedings. Instead the party belatedly did confirm the bald facts stated by Mr. Swamy. But beyond their stupidity is revealed the pathetic state of Congress leaders.

Never mind the legal or the moral angles related to the episode, what about the political angle? If the loan was advanced by the Congress party why the shares of the company were reciprocally transferred to Mrs. Sonia Gandhi and Mr. Rahul Gandhi and not to the Congress party? The answer is self evident. Apart from Mrs. Sonia Gandhi and Mr. Rahul Gandhi there is no other Congress party. I am not saying this. Congress leaders by their silence are saying this.