India’s principal opposition party, the Indian National Congress, declared on Friday that its bank accounts had been subjected to freezing by federal tax authorities, just weeks ahead of an anticipated nationwide election.
The move sparked widespread condemnation from the Congress and its allies, who accused the government of undermining democracy. Congress Treasurer Ajay Maken revealed in a press briefing that the freeze occurred subsequent to an examination of the party’s income tax filings for the 2018-19 fiscal year. Maken disclosed that the Income Tax Department had issued a payment demand amounting to 2.1 billion rupees ($25.3 million) concerning the ongoing investigation.
Maken emphasized the broader implications, stating, “The Congress party’s bank accounts haven’t been frozen. It’s the democracy that has been frozen.” He questioned whether the nation was heading towards a single-party system.
Later in the day, an income tax tribunal provisionally reinstated access to the party’s accounts pending a hearing scheduled for Wednesday, as confirmed by lawyer and Congress lawmaker Vivek Tankha.
Efforts to obtain comments from India’s Income Tax Department, Finance Ministry, and various leaders within the Congress party were underway, as reported by CNN.
Protests erupted in Delhi’s prominent Jantar Mantar area, with Congress supporters gathering to denounce the action. Party chief Mallikarjun Kharge urged the judiciary to intervene and “safeguard the multi-party system in this country and preserve India’s Democracy.”
Allegations of democratic suppression in India have been recurrent, with the latest incident on Friday adding to a series of investigations targeting notable adversaries of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Former Congress luminary Rahul Gandhi, scion of a political lineage that produced three prime ministers, faced disqualification as a lawmaker last year and was handed a two-year jail sentence for defamation in a verdict his supporters allege was politically motivated. Gandhi’s status as a lawmaker was subsequently reinstated following intervention by India’s Supreme Court.
In a staunch declaration, Gandhi asserted his party’s determination to defend India’s democracy. “We have never bowed down before dictatorship, nor will we ever bow down,” he conveyed on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The Congress party, once a formidable force in Indian politics, has witnessed a decline in electoral fortunes since Modi assumed power a decade ago, pledging economic advancement and societal prosperity.
Attempting to forge an opposition coalition to challenge Modi’s BJP in the upcoming election, the Congress Party faces internal strains as backing for the BJP swells, just weeks before an estimated 900 million Indians are slated to cast their votes.
Termed the world’s largest democratic exercise, the Indian election assumes critical significance for the nation, as it garners global attention with Modi positioning himself as a statesman solidifying India as a contemporary superpower.
However, domestic tensions persist, particularly among minorities who feel marginalized under the BJP’s majoritarian Hindu nationalist policies.
In the latest barometer of voter sentiment, the Congress Party suffered setbacks in three out of four regional contests in key state elections in December, bolstering Modi and the BJP.
