Youth Congress stages protest against Arun Jaitley, demands his resignation

NEW DELHI: The Congress on Friday escalated its attack on the Narendra Modi government over the Vijay Mallya episode after the fugitive liquor baron claimed he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before fleeing to the UK. Congress' youth wing staged a protest here on Friday Jaitley, demanding his resignation over the politically charged controversy. Youth Congress activists took out a protest march from Udyog Bhawan and were stopped by police while they were heading towards Jaitley's residence on Krishna Menon Marg. "BJP, that claims to be a champion of nationalism, has betrayed the nation. Youth Congress will not relent till Arun Jaitley steps down," Srinivas BV, vice president of the Indian Youth Congress, was quoted by PTI as saying. Protesters raised slogans against Jaitley and the Modi government, seeking a reply on Mallya's escape from the country. They also sported masks of Jaitley, Mallya and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and also rode a vehicle to enact Mallya's act of leaving the country. Meanwhile, Congress media in-charge Randeep Surjewala asked the Modi government to answer that who "ordered" the CBI to change the lookout notice from 'to detain' to 'to inform'. "The question is simple, the nation wants to know who was the architect, benefactor and protector in this case? Why is Modiji afraid to conduct a fair investigation into this matter? It shows that PM Modi is not just a part of this crime but the main culprit," he alleged. Jaitely did not tell the CBI, the Serious Fraud Investigation Office or the Ministry of External Affairs to stop Mallya and detain his passport, he said. "Was this not his duty to stop the offender?" he asked.