The corrupt ‘Don’ Sonia Gandhi is world’s 4th richest politician

English: Sonia Gandhi, Indian politician, president of the Indian National Congress and the widow of former Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi. Français : Sonia Gandhi, une femme politique indienne, présidente du parti du congrès indien, et veuve de Rajiv Gandhi, ancien premier ministre de l’Inde. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

While other countries are blamed, the fact remains that India holds the prize on plotical corruption. Manmohan Singh was involved in a $32 Billion 3G scandal which involved almost all major players of his cabinet. Now news has surfaced that the leader of ruling INC (Indian National Congress) Sonia Gandhi (Antonia Maino) has been listed as world’s fourth richest politician with a total wealth of over US$ 18 billion.

While 70% of Bharat languises at less then $2 per day and half the population of Delhi, Mumbai, Benras, Kolkot an every other major city lives, breatehs, procreates in, and dies on sidewalks–the Bharati elite, like the rest of the South Asia elites basques in abject luxury. Mr. Zarddari the other corrupt politicians is estimated to have $1.3 billion or more. However Ms. Gandhi takes the cake–all in the name of democracy.

The site places Sonia Gandhi at the fourth place after the Saudi king, the Sultan of Brunei and Michael Bloomberg, New York’s mayor.

This from a woman who used to be an ordinary Air hostess on the Italian Airline. She seduced Rajiv Gandhi, who made billions in the Bofor’s scandal. After he was assassinated, she has ruled Bharat with a firm hand–placing Manmohan singh as a puppet Prime Minster and enjoying her game as a kingmaker. Die Welt‘s lists the others in this table.

http://www.businessinsider.com/richest-politicians-in-the-world-2012-2?op=1

• A G Noorani, a well-known Indian journalist, had reported on both Schweizer Illustrierte and Albats’ exposés in Statesman (December 31, 1988).
• Subramanian Swamy had put publised the photocopies of the pages of Schweizer Illustrierte and Albats’ book in his website along with the mail of the Swiss magazine dated February 23, 2002 confirming that in its article of November 1991 it had named Rajiv Gandhi with a total of Swiss Franc 2.5 billion ($2.2 billion) in secret account; it had also offered to supply a original copy of the magazine to Swamy. (See: http://www.janataparty.org/annexures/ann10p43.html)
• Dr Subramanian Swamy had charged Ms. Gandhi of corruption.
• Now Business Insider has a short feature, “Meet The 23 Richest Politicians In The World”, where Ms Antonia Maino (aka Sonia Gandhi) is listed as the 4th richest with wealth estimated between US$ 2-19 billion.
• The news story has been to ‘World’s Luxury Guide’. Luxury Guide (German newspaper Die Welt‘s), OpenSecrets.org, Forbes.com, Bloomberg.com, Wikipedia.org, and Guardian.co.uk.

Sonia gandhi early days (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Schweizer Illustrierte (readership about 1 million) , in its issue of November 19, 1991, exposed Rajiv Gandhi’that Sonia Gandhi the widow of the former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was controlling secret account with 2.5 billion Swiss Francs (US$2.2 billion) in her minor son’s name’.

KGB papers:

• In her famous book “The State Within a State: The KGB and its Hold on Russia-Past, Present, and Future”, an investigative journalist, Yevgenia Albats says:
• 

  English: This is the sketch of former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

  “A letter signed by Victor Chebrikov, who replaced Andropov as the KGB head in 1982 noted: ‘the USSR KGB maintains contact with the son of the Premier Minister Rajiv Gandhi (of India). R Gandhi expresses deep gratitude for the benefits accruing to the Prime Minister’s family from the commercial dealings of the firm he controls in co-operation with the Soviet foreign trade organisations.

•  R Gandhi reports confidentially that a substantial portion of the funds obtained through this channel are used to support the party of R Gandhi’.” (p.223).
• Albats has also disclosed that, in December 2005, KGB chief Victor Chebrikov had asked for authorisation from the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, “to make payments in US dollars to the family members of Rajiv Gandhi, namely Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Ms Paola Maino, mother of Sonia Gandhi.” And even before Albats’ book came out the Russian media had leaked out the details of the pay-offs.
• On July 4, 1992, The Hindu had reported: “the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service admits the possibility that the KGB could have been involved in arranging profitable Soviet contract for the company controlled by Rajiv Gandhi family”.

Sonia runs Bharat like her own fiefdom. The evidence against her mounts in the Indian media, but the illeterate votes keep voting for her party which keeps electing her:

• The New Indian Express (April 29, 2009) written in response to Sonia Gandhi speech at Mangalore (April 27, 2009).
• The article had questioned her about her family’s corrupt wealth in Swiss banks in the context of her vow to bring back the monies stashed away abroad.
• Rajinder Puri, a reputed journalist, has also earlier written on the KGB disclosures in his column on August 15, 2006.
• Recently, in India Today (December 27, 2010) the redoubtable Ram Jethmalani has referred to the Swiss exposé, asking where is that money now?
• Amal Datta (CPI(M)) had raised the US$ 2.2 billion issue in Parliament on December 7, 1991, but Speaker Shivraj Patil expunged the Gandhi name from the proceedings!

Contrary to Pakistan where the Supreme Court is relentlessly pursue Mr. Zardari on his ill begotten wealth, Bharat has shown little enthusiasm to track the illicit funds of Indians in Swiss and other banks.

It is estimated that there is between $500 billion and US$1.4 trillion stashed abroad.  Global Financial Integrity (GFI), a non-profit institution working against global black funds, has recently estimated that the Indian wealth secreted away is about $462. The GFI says that more than two-thirds of it was looted away under the liberalisation regime:

• “From 1948 through 2008, India lost a total of $213 billion in illicit financial flows (or illegal capital flight)” through “tax evasion, corruption, bribery and kickbacks, and criminal activities”.
• As early as February 2008 German authorities had collected information about illegal money kept by citizens of different countries in Lichtenstein bank.
• The German finance minister offered to provide the names of the account holders to any government interested in the names of its citizens.

Some 250 Indian names were found in the Lichtenstein Bank list. TOI (The Times of India) reported that “the ministry of finance and PMO have, however, not shown much interest in finding out about those who have their lockers on the secret banks of Liechtenstein which prides itself in its banking system”.

Sonia Gandhi runs a cabal from South Block like an Italian don, and buys and sells politicians. None can speak out against the “Italian Mafia”.

The corrupt ‘Don’ Sonia Gandhi is world’s 4th richest politician