Swamy targets Rahul over UK citizenship

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 16

BJP leader Subramanian Swamy today alleged that Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi had declared himself a British citizen in the registration papers of a private company in London—a charge that the lead Opposition party dismissed, calling it “petty and mindless mud-slinging” by the saffron party.

In his letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Swamy alleged Gandhi floated a company called Backops Limited in 2003 in the UK and demanded that he be stripped of his Indian citizenship and parliamentary membership.

According to Swamy, documents show Rahul called himself “British” in the annual returns of the UK-based firm. He was the director and secretary of the company, according to documents extracted from the company law authorities of Britain.

“No Member of Parliament can incorporate a company abroad without prior permission under the existing laws and without declaring the same in his nomination form as a candidate for election to Parliament,” Swamy said.

The Congress however rubbished Swamy’s allegations as “mindless mudslinging”.

The Congress released the Certificate of Incorporation of Backops, a private limited company registered with the Registrar of Companies for England and Wales on August 21, 2003, showing Rahul as an Indian against the column of nationality.

The Congress maintained that the annual returns needed to be updated and altered to show his nationality as an India.