PM Modi to address Lok Sabha at 3:30 pm today amid ruckus over Adani issue

Amid stalemate in Parliament over Adani issue, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to reply to the debate on the Motion of Thanks on the President's Address in the Lok Sabha at around 3:30 pm on Wednesday, the Prime Minister's Office said.

The Lok Sabha had taken up discussion on the Motion of Thanks, moved by BJP member Chandra Prakash Joshi, on Tuesday, after three days of disruptions in Parliament. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, DMK leader Kanimozhi, Trinamool leader Mahua Moitra, Union Minister Smriti Irani had participated in the discussion on Tuesday.

The Lok Sabha had allotted 12 hours for the debate. The first half of the Budget session will continue till February 13 and the second half will be held from March 13 to April 6.

Modi's speech will come a day after a belligerent Rahul Gandhi led a blistering opposition attack in Lok Sabha over the Hindenburg report, claiming that the meteoric rise in Gautam Adani's fortunes happened after the BJP came to power in 2014 as he rose in the global rich list from the 609th to the second spot eventually.

He asked how much money Adani has given to the BJP in the last 20 years, including through electoral bonds.

''There should be a case study on Adani by business schools such as Harvard, on how the relationship between business and politics works, India is a case study,'' Gandhi said.

Gandhi, who just completed his over 4,000-km Bharat Jodo Yatra, said people asked him how Adani got into so many businesses and succeeded.

''From Tamil Nadu, Kerala to Himachal Pradesh, Kashmir, we have been hearing one name everywhere 'Adani'. Across the entire country, it's just 'Adani', 'Adani', 'Adani'...,'' Gandhi said.

He said that during the yatra people also asked him how Adani's net worth increased from USD 8 billion to USD 140 billion between 2014 and 2022.

''In 2014, he was in 609th spot on the list of richest people and climbed to the second spot,'' the former Congress chief said.

Gandhi also raised the issue of the report by US-based Hindenburg Research, saying it alleged that Adani has shell companies abroad.

Pointing out that Adani works in strategic sectors, he said the government must find out about these shell companies as to who controls them as this is a national security issue.

The Opposition has been demanding a joint parliamentary committee probe or a Supreme Court-monitored investigation into the allegations of fraud and manipulation made by Hindenburg Research against Adani's companies that triggered an unprecedented stock crash. The group has denied the charges.

On Wednesday, Leader of Opposition in the Parliament and Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge attacked the Central government over its links to the Adani Group and said that PM Modi’s closest friends’ wealth has increased 13 times in 2.5 years. This led to huge chaos in Rajya Sabha.   

"In 2014, PM Modi said na khaunga na khane dunga. Now I want to ask why is he letting some industrialists to 'eat'. The wealth of one of the closest friends of PM Modi increased by 13 times in 2.5 years. In 2014, it was Rs 50,000 crore while in 2019 it became Rs 1 lakh crore. I don't know what magic happened that his assets touched Rs 12 lakh crore in just two years," Congress MP Kharge said amid protests from the BJP legislators.