NDA now is 'Nitish-Naidu Dependent Alliance': Congress

The Congress on Friday (June 7) took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his reference to NDA several times in his speech during the alliance's meeting in New Delhi.

Modi did not refer to NDA as many times in the last 10 years as he did in his hour-long speech at the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) meeting, the party said.

'No one trusts'

Congress leader Pawan Khera described the NDA as "Nitish-Naidu Dependent Alliance" referring to JDU's Nitish Kumar and Chandrababu Naidu of the TDP who are part of the NDA.

"Sahib took the name of NDA more times in today's one-and-a-half-hour speech than the number of times he took it in the last 10 years. You and I understand that the full form of NDA is Nitish/Naidu Dependent Alliance," Khera said.

"But both the people (Nitish and Naidu) know that no one trusts the guarantee of this person, not even them," he added.

'Removal' of statues

Khera also said the Modi government owes an explanation to the people over the "removal" of statues of the national icons in the Parliament complex.

Statues of Mahatma Gandhi, B R Ambedkar and Chhatrapati Shivaji among others have been relocated within Parliament premises as part of a landscaping exercise, a move that has been sharply criticised by the Congress which alleged that those have been moved from their places of prominence in front of Parliament House.

Khera claimed the government has "removed" statues of national icons out of "frustration" and in a bid to vent out the anger over the BJP not having won a majority on its own.

He said the statues were "removed" without the decision of the joint parliamentary committee on the maintenance of heritage characters and development of the Parliament House complex and the committee on the installation of portraits and statues of national leaders and Parliamentarians in the Parliament complex.

'BJP taking revenge'

He said the last meeting of these committees on portraits and statues was held on December 18, 2018.

"In such a situation, the country demands an explanation on why the statues of national leaders were removed and what is the intention behind it," the Congress leader said.

"The BJP is taking revenge for its defeat in Maharashtra by Shifting the Shivaji statue out of Parliament. They are abusing Lord Ram's devotees in Ayodhya because they couldn't win any seat around the Ram Temple. NDA's full form now in Naidu-Nitish Dependent alliance," he said.

The Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi of Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) pocketed 31 of the 48 seats in Maharashtra while the BJP-led NDA fell significantly short of its target of bagging 45-plus seats in the state, garnering just 17 seats.

Modi bows before a copy of Constitution

Meanwhile, Modi, as soon as he entered the Central Hall for the NDA meeting, he bowed before a copy of the Constitution placed there and lifted it to his forehead reverentially.

Modi was unanimously elected the leader of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) parliamentary party on Friday, after which the NDA staked claim on government formation and he was appointed as Prime Minister-designate by President Droupadi Murmu.

During his speech at the NDA meeting, Modi said he would strive to ensure unanimity in running the next government and asserted that the NDA is not a combine of some parties to get power but an organic alliance committed to the principle of 'nation first'.

(With agency inputs)