00:00Viewers, let's take you through what's happened so far in this very story, in this latest flashpoint that's come about
00:07in the bigger debate that was already underway, demanding Yanesh Kumar's resignation over the EC Rift allegations that had come
00:16in on that media report.
00:18It's a decade-old alleged conversation that's now come under the spotlight and has snowballed into a major political battle
00:25over the election commission.
00:27The former Kerala Chief Secretary, Gigi Thompson, has alleged that Yanesh Kumar, during a flight to Delhi in 2016, advised
00:34him to contest the 2019 Lok Sabha elections on a BJP ticket.
00:39An allegation, Thompson says, he rejected the offer of.
00:42The claim has triggered a fierce political showdown. Rahul Gandhi himself has launched a scathing attack, alleging that Yanesh Kumar
00:49used to recruit for BJP and accusing the Prime Minister and Home Minister of making him the umpire for elections.
00:55On that note, even Priyanka Gandhi has now added to the tirade and launched an attack, which we just took
01:00you through the details of.
01:02Congress has questioned the CEC's neutrality, but the BJP has not stepped down as well.
01:09They have also hit back hard, asking why Thompson remained silent for nearly a decade and why he has spoken
01:15up now.
01:16The BJP has questioned Thompson's credibility and called his claim fabricated.
01:23On that note, earlier, my colleague Swesha Sawant spoke to the BJP spokesperson, R.P. Singh, who questioned Gigi Thompson's
01:30timing and raised doubts over his allegations.
01:34Let's listen in to what he has to say.
01:38With the Congress levelling these allocations, what do you have to say?
01:43Well, Mr. Ganesh Kumar will have to answer that, but this is related to 2016.
01:46Why does the man wake up after 10 years?
01:49It means there is something more than what he is saying.
01:52But he is left into some flight.
01:54He took with Mr. Ganesh Kumar in 2016 and all these years he kept quiet.
01:58It means there is something more.
01:59I mean, probably he is on Congress payroll or something like that.
02:03I mean, I'm not very sure.
02:05But something of that sort probably is there.
02:07Otherwise, why would a man wake up after a decade, complete 10 years?
02:11But again, Mr. Ganesh Kumar will have to answer that.
02:14I'm not the spokesman of Mr. Ganesh Kumar.
02:16But as I see as a political man, as a political analyst, that this is a complete fabrication,
02:22or someone has told him to do so, because 10 years is a big period for someone to come
02:28in public about something which has happened 10 years ago.
