Ex-Pak minister again praises Rahul Gandhi for wealth survey, BJP reacts

Former Pakistan minister Chaudhry Fawad Hussain on Saturday praised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, this time, over his party's promise of conducting a wealth redistribution survey, if it was voted to power. He compared Rahul Gandhi with his great-grandfather and India's first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, and said "both were socialists".

Hussain's fresh praise for Rahul Gandhi came days after the former Pakistan minister shared a video of the Congress MP, in which he was seen targeting the BJP-led Centre over the 'pran pratishtha' of Ayodhya's Ram Temple.

Hussain praised the Gandhi scion, a move that drew a sharp reaction from the BJP.

On Saturday, Hussain, a former minister in then Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's Cabinet, addressed Rahul Gandhi as 'Rahul sahib', and tweeted, "Rahul Gandhi like his great-grandfather Jawaharlal (Nehru) has a socialist in him. Problems of India and Pakistan are so same even after 75 years of Partition. Rahul sahib, in his last night speech, said 30 or 50 families own 70 per cent of India's wealth.

"Same goes for Pakistan where only a business club called Pakistan Business Council and few real estate Seth’s own 75 per cent of Pakistan's wealth. Fair distribution of wealth is the biggest challenge of capitalism," he said.

BJP SLAMS RAHUL GANDHI

Union Minister Kiren Rijiju took a dig at Rahul Gandhi and asserted that he had a "big fan following" in Pakistan.

"Congratulations to Rahul Gandhi ji for non-stop praise in Pakistan! Rahul Gandhi has such a big fan following in Pakistan! Even a senior political leaders like Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, who was Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, is Rahul Gandhi's fan!" he tweeted.

BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi alleged that Hussain had expressed his love for the Gandhi family.

"Former Pakistan minister Chaudhry Fawad Hussain recently said what the Opposition (in India) says, that is BJP's government should not come to power in India. PM (Narendra) Modi should lose. I request all to go and see Chaudhry Fawad Hussain's tweet and compare the language with what the Opposition (in India) says," he told reporters.

"Today, in a new tweet, he (Chaudhry Fawad Hussain) has expressed his love for the family (Gandhi family). He has used the word 'Rahul sahib'. Till now, the Congress party has not denied it," he said.

ROW OVER CONGRESS'S WEALTH DISTRIBUTION SURVEY PROMISE

Last month, PM Modi hit out at the Congress over its wealth redistribution survey promise and said that the party, if voted to power, would distribute the country's wealth to "infiltrators" and "those who have more children".

The Opposition hit back at PM Modi with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi alleging that the Prime Minister was attempting to divert the attention of the people from various issues.

Earlier, Rahul Gandhi announced at a rally in Hyderabad that the Congress, if voted to power, will conduct a financial and institutional survey to determine the distribution of people's wealth in the country.

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