New Delhi, Feb 13: The Congress on Friday demanded Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri’s resignation as his name figures in the “Epstein files” released in the United States and asked on whose behalf was he interacting with Jeffrey Epstein, who was convicted for sexual crimes with children.
Addressing a press conference here, Congress’s media and publicity department head Pawan Khera asked under whose authority was Puri meeting Epstein and alleged that the needle of suspicion points towards only one direction.
“In 2017, Hardeep Puriji was the president and chairman of the Governing Council of the Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS), a Delhi-based think tank funded by the Government of India. Why was a representative of the Government of India e-mailing Epstein in 2017? Why was he communicating with Epstein — a convicted sex offender and criminal?” Khera asked.
Even earlier, between 2014 and 2016, under whose authority and instructions was Puri interacting with Epstein, the Congress leader asked.
“Even more disturbing, Hardeep Puri spoke about Digital India seven months before the programme was officially announced in India. Why was Digital India being discussed with Epstein at all? On whose behalf?” he asked.
Puri has, however, denied the charges levelled at him by the opposition party.
Earlier in the day, Congress MPs held a protest in the Parliament House complex, demanding Puri’s resignation.
Several Congress MPs lined up outside the Parliament building. They raised slogans against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and demanded answers from him.
They also held a banner with pictures of Puri and Epstein.
Puri slammed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday for “passing innuendo” against him, asserting that he had met Epstein on a “few occasions” but his interactions with him had nothing to do with the crimes the convicted American sex offender was involved in.
