Hindenburg row: Who is George Soros, often accused by BJP of links with Congress?

Ravi Shankar Prasad accused the Congress party of attempting to destabilise the stock market and harm small investors due to their opposition to PM Modi. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday while responding to the recent Hindenburg report alleged that George Soros, a known critic of India is a major investor in Hindenburg. Prasad also accused the Congress of attempting to destabilise the stock market and harm small investors due to their opposition to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This is not the first time the BJP has attempted to link George Soros with the Congress. In June last year, former Union minister Smriti Irani accused Rahul Gandhi of having connections with Soros and alleged that he had met individuals funded by the American businessman. Who is George Soros, repeatedly mentioned in Indian political discourse? George Soros is a prominent Hungarian-American businessman, investor, and philanthropist. His net worth stands at $6.7 billion and has contributed over $32 billion to the Open Society Foundations with $15 billion already disbursed, representing 64 percent of his original wealth. Forbes has recognised him as the “most generous giver” in terms of the percentage of his net worth donated. Born to a Jewish family, Soros escaped the Nazi occupation of Hungary and relocated to the UK in 1947. He pursued his studies at the London School of Economics, where he received a Bachelor of Science in Philosophy in 1951 and a Master of Science in the same field in 1954. Soros began his professional journey in merchant banks in Britain and America before launching his first hedge fund, Double Eagle, in 1969. The success of this fund helped him establish Soros Fund Management, his second hedge fund, in 1970. The 94-year-old businessman is known for supporting “progressive and liberal causes,” channelling his donations through the Open Society Foundations. Between 1979 and 2011, he contributed over $11 billion to various philanthropic efforts. By 2017 his total donations, which focused on civil initiatives to alleviate poverty, enhance transparency, and fund scholarships and universities globally, amounted to $12 billion. In February 2023, speaking before the Munich Security Conference, George Soros addressed the stock selloff of Adani Group companies following the Hindenburg Research report. He criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi as “no democrat” and suggested that the Adani “affair” could potentially lead to a resurgence of democracy in India.