Bengaluru:  The mountain of allegations against Congress only continues to grow day by day. As the party struggles to defend itself against allegations of money embezzlement and donations, it has now come to light as to how China dishonoured the Indian Prime Minister in 2008. It was Manmohan Singh who was the PM then. 

As shared by a BJP MP Shobha Karandlaje, it is said that China, which hosted the Olympics in that year, did not invite the PM but extended it to Sonia Gandhi, the AICC chief. 

Incidentally, the then Chinese President Hu Jintao met Sonia Gandhi to sign an MoU, which has become the talk of the town. 

The BJP MP called these 'perks and powers' enjoyed by the Gandhi family 'a mockery' of the democratic system asking the Congress party how they could enjoy the privileges that were meant for the Indian Prime Minister.

 

Rajiv Gandhi Foundation is in the news for having received humongous sums as donations from the Chinese government in 2006.

Now, it has emerged that Dr Manmohan Singh, when he was the finance minister in 1991 and 1992 had tried allocating Rs 100 crore for the Foundation.

"The Rajiv Gandhi Foundation has been established to perpetuate the memory of the great leader and to promote the ideals and objectives for which he lived and laid down his life," Singh had said.

"This Foundation, among other things, will lay particular emphasis on research and action programmes relating to the application of science and technology for development, propagation of literacy, the protection of the environment, the promotion of communal harmony and national integration, the uplift of the under-privileged, women and handicapped persons, administrative reforms and India's role in the global economy," he had added.

"As a homage to the late Shri Rajiv Gandhi and in support of the laudable objectives of the Foundation, Government has decided to contribute Rs 100 crore to the Foundation at the rate of Rs 20 crores per annum for a period of five years beginning from the current year," the then Finance Minister said in the Budget speech.

As reported by a popular website, the China government gave a grant of Rs 10 lakh to the Rajiv Gandhi in the year 2006 as financial assistance.

It is reported that the foundation is headed by Sonia Gandhi and was handed over by Chinese Ambassador to India Sun Yuxi.