Lalit Modi faces allegations of money laundering and is wanted by Indian authorities.
Highlights
- "Why do all thieves have Modi in their names...?" Mr Gandhi said at rally
- Lalit Modi faces money-laundering charges, wanted by Indian authorities
- PM Modi slammed Mr Gandhi and called him a "dynast"
Former IPL chief and tainted cricket administrator Lalit Modi has said he will sue Congress chief Rahul Gandhi for his "all thieves have Modi in their surnames" remarks at an election rally recently.
"The #papu @rahulgandhi says "All MODI's are CHOR's". Well he will be taken to court in the UK by Me. But reality is that the world knows 5 decades of daylight #looting of #India was and is done by none other than the #Gandhi #family," Lalit Modi tweeted, tagging Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"I have a question. Why do all the thieves have Modi in their names whether be it Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi and Narendra Modi? We don't know how many more such Modis will come out," Mr Gandhi had said recently at a rally in Maharashtra, as he accused PM Modi of corruption.
PM Modi hit back at Mr Gandhi, saying that such a language does not suit the Congress president but using derogatory words have become synonymous with the "naamdar (dynast)".
PM Modi, speaking at a rally in Chhattisgarh on Tuesday, said, "Should such language be used? We have to throw out such people. Abusive language has become the norm. The Sahu community here would have been called Modi in Gujarat. Are they all thieves?"
Before Lalit Modi's tweet, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi too had said he will file a defamation case against Mr Gandhi for his "thieves" comment.
Lalit Modi faces allegations of money laundering and is wanted by Indian authorities. In March 2017, the Interpol rejected India's appeal for a global warrant against him.
The IPL founder left India in 2010 amid allegations of tax evasion, money-laundering and proxy ownership and is based in London since the last few years. The Enforcement Directorate alleges he manipulated the process of assigning broadcast rights of the IPL in 2009, reportedly in exchange for a kickback of over 125 crores.
Earlier this week, BJP lawmaker Meenakshi Lekhi requested the Supreme Court for criminal contempt action against Rahul Gandhi for using the phrase "chowkidar chor hai (watchman is a thief)" against PM Modi and said Mr Gandhi attributed the statement to the Supreme Court in its order in the Rafale case. The court asked Mr Gandhi to give an explanation by April 22.