New Delhi, Jan 18 (Agency) The Congress on Tuesday slammed the Modi government over the raids by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Punjab, including the residence of a nephew of state Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, branding the agency as an ‘Election Department’. “Conducting an ED raid is BJP’s favourite weapon because they themselves have things to hide. Not everyone is like you. We have no fear,” former Congress president Rahul Gandhi said in a tweet with the hashtag ‘BJP fake raid’, in an apparent reference to the ED raids at several locations in Punjab. Earlier in the day, Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said: “Sensing its defeat in the upcoming Assembly polls, the Modi government and BJP have sent the Enforcement Directorate to take revenge against a Dalit Chief Minister in a five-year-old case.
ED has become the ‘Election Department’.” “In 2018, the said case was registered under the Mining Act and there is no name of any relative of Channi. There was no name of the CM’s nephew Bhupinder Singh Honey. Modiji you have unleashed Central probe agencies against our leaders several times but we will not bow down,” he added. Attacking the PM and AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal, the Congress leader said, “There is a fixed fight going on between Modi and Kejriwal. When PM’s cavalcade stopped for 10-15 minutes, Kejriwal attacked the Punjab government, and today also on ED raids the first reaction came from him. One does the illegal work and the other defends it. People of Punjab will not fall into their trap.” He exuded confidence that the Congress will form a government in Punjab again. Echoing the similar sentiment, Charanjit Singh Channi has said the raids by the ED at his relative house was aimed at putting pressure on him ahead of the Assembly polls. Assembly elections in Punjab will be held on February 20. The counting of votes will take place on March 10.