Why is 20 year old UK company Backups Limited suddenly in the headlines again? After the allegations of Nishikant Dubey, new questions have arisen on the election affidavit, Rahul Gandhi and old controversies. That unknown address in London and a mysterious company buried 17 years ago!
Backups UK Company: In Indian politics, sometimes even two decades old dead bodies come out of their graves and create a stir in the corridors of power. This time, the center of controversy is an anonymous address in the United Kingdom (UK) – 2 Frognal Way, London – and a company which has been buried on paper 17 years ago. Its name is Backups Limited. During the monsoon session of Parliament, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey asked a sharp question on social media platform X, which has created suspense and tension in the political atmosphere from Delhi to London. Dubey alleges that a very influential MP of India had deep connections with this foreign company, which he deliberately hid in his election affidavit.
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That alleged maze of Lovegrove, McKnight and the ‘Tukde-Tukde Gang’!
The revelations made by Nishikant Dubey in front of the journalists seem like the pages of a detective novel. He claimed that there are two main faces behind this company formed in 2003 – Brian Lovegrove and Ulrik McKnight. The surprising thing is that Lovegrove is associated with more than 1,000 companies and McKnight is associated with about 256 companies. The suspense deepened when Dubey alleged that around 60 companies were registered at this single address in London, including ‘Asia TV Limited’ (which was once linked to Amitabh Bachchan’s brother Ajitabh Bachchan). Dubey has raised a direct question whether some TV channels running from the same address supported anti-India forces? What is the role of this address in ‘Tukde Tukde Gang’?
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After all, what is the story of Backups Limited?
Backups Limited was started in 2003 in the United Kingdom. The company was originally a business and technology sector organization. Later it came into limelight because in public records and media reports, its name was linked to the initial business journey of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. According to the official profile of Congress, after working abroad, Rahul Gandhi returned to India and joined a technology outsourcing company named Backops Services Private Limited in Mumbai. For this reason, political debates took place from time to time regarding UK’s Backups Limited and India’s Backups Services.
Flashback 2003: That ‘secret’ page of Rahul Gandhi’s early career
The roots of this mysterious company are linked to the beginning of the political journey of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. Official records show that after working in London consulting firm ‘Monitor Group’, Rahul Gandhi started a technology outsourcing firm named ‘Backops Services Private Ltd’ in Mumbai. But the real controversy is about UK-based ‘Backops Limited’, whose founding directors were Rahul Gandhi and his business partner Ulrich McKnight. Till 2005, Rahul Gandhi’s stake in this UK company was 65% and McKnight’s stake was 35%. However, this company was officially shut down in February 2009.
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That old genie of citizenship and the mysterious bank account of $18,600
This is not the first time that there has been controversy regarding backups. In 2004, when Rahul Gandhi contested the Lok Sabha elections for the first time, in his affidavit he had mentioned the HSBC-UK account of Europe (No. 58332832), in which US$ 18,600 was deposited, as an asset of Backops Limited. But the real earthquake came in 2015, when BJP leader Subramanian Swamy, citing some documents of a UK company, claimed that Rahul Gandhi had declared himself a British citizen. Although a UK government department later ruled it a clerical error or typo, the controversy forever made the name Backupps a mysterious political enigma.
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The incomplete truth about the Scorpene submarine deal and offsets
The most sensational connection with Backops came to light during the ‘Scorpene submarine leak scandal’ of 2016. In the year 2019, the then Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had made a big allegation linking this offset debate to backups. The allegation was not that Backops got the defense deal directly, but the allegation was that Rahul Gandhi’s former partner Ulrich McKnight was later associated with the companies that got the ‘defense offset’ work of the 2005 Scorpene submarine deal with French Naval Group (DCNS). Jaitley had directly called it a case of ‘conflict of interest’.
The company closed in 2009, but the controversy did not stop.
According to public records, Rahul Gandhi and Ulrich McKnight were initially reported to be the founding directors of Backops Limited. According to reports, till June 2005, Rahul Gandhi held majority stake in the company. After this the company gradually ceased operations and was officially closed in February 2009.
Now why is Backups Limited in discussion?
After the recent statements of Nishikant Dubey, Backops Limited has once again come into the center of political debate. He has raised many questions regarding the company’s registration, London address, directors and alleged business relationships and has said that he will also raise this issue in Parliament. At present, political rhetoric continues on these allegations. Public records do show that the company existed and was later shut down, but many of the allegations related to the current controversy remain in the realm of political claims and have not been finalized by any competent court or investigating agency. In such a situation, the debate on this issue is likely to intensify in Parliament and political circles in the coming days.
However, till date no court or investigating agency of India has proved any corruption against Rahul Gandhi or Backops in this case. Now the new attacks of Nishikant Dubey have let this cooled genie out of the bottle. It will be interesting to see whether the truth about this London address will cause any major political explosion within the Parliament?
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