Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks in the Lok Sabha during the discussion on the 'glorious journey of 75 years of the India Constitution', in the ongoing Winter session of Parliament, in New Delhi, Saturday, December 14. PTI
Parliament LIVE | PM Modi attacks Congress; proposes 11 resolutions
India is not only a big democracy but it is the mother of democracy, Modi said in the Lok Sabha replying to a two-day debate on the 75 years of the adoption of the Constitution
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday (December 14) alleged that the Congress, having "tasted blood", repeatedly wounded the Constitution while his government's policies and decisions since it took office in 2014 have been aimed at boosting India's strength and unity in line with the vision of the Constitution.
Replying to a two-day debate in Lok Sabha on the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution, he also proposed 11 resolutions before Parliament, including development for all and zero tolerance for corruption.
Modi attacks Nehru-Gandhi family
He took a swipe at the past Congress governments, accusing them of planting "poisonous" seeds in the country's diversity to accentuate its contradictions and damage its unity.
Also read: BJP, Shiv Sena hit back at Rahul Gandhi over Savarkar remarks
Training guns at the Nehru-Gandhi family of the Congress, he said they left no stone unturned to strike blows to the Constitution.
"This family challenged the Constitution at every level," he said, adding that he was singling out the family as its members were in power for 55 years.
The family, having "tasted blood", repeatedly wounded the Constitution, he said, citing several decisions of Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi when they held the office of prime minister.
Their next generation is also into the same game, he said in a swipe at the Leader of Opposition in the House Rahul Gandhi and his MP sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
Modi said leaders like him and many others who came from ordinary families could never have reached where they did but for the strength of the Constitution, as he underlined his long commitment to its values.
As chief minister of Gujarat, he said, his government celebrated the 60th year of the Constitution's adoption by placing a copy of the document on an elephant while he walked underneath barefoot in a symbolic gesture to highlight its supremacy.
Modi's 11 resolutions that were proposed in Lok Sabha
1. Everyone should fulfil their duties, be it the government or citizens.
2. “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas”.
3. Zero tolerance towards corruption.
4. Citizens should take pride in the country's culture and traditions, and laws should be followed with pride.
5. Free oneself from the colonial mindset.
6. Free the country's politics from "family rule".
7. Respect the Constitution and prevent its misuse for personal gains.
8. Ensure reservations are not snatched away from those who already have it, and avoid religion-based reservations.
9. India should lead by example for women-led growth.
10. States ensure India's development. Ensure the country's development goes hand-in-hand with the development of states.
11. “Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat” as our goal.
Modi slams Congress for imposing Emergency
Slamming the Nehru-Gandhi family, he said first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru amended the country's guiding document to curb freedom of expression and his daughter Indira Gandhi imposed Emergency to defy a Supreme Court judgment that annulled her election as an MP.
She "throttled India's democracy and mutilated the Constitution" when the 25th year of its adoption was approaching, to save her chair as prime minister, he said, noting that she also effected an amendment to protect the president, vice president and herself from any legal challenge to their position with a retrospective effect.
The country was turned into jail and the judiciary was throttled, he said. Rajiv Gandhi, who took over as prime minister after his mother's assassination, also amended the Constitution.
This blot on the Congress cannot be washed off, Modi asserted.
Without naming Rahul Gandhi, the prime minister said an "arrogant" person tore the decision of the Cabinet when the Congress-led UPA government headed by the then prime minister Manmohan Singh was in power.
The National Advisory Council, which was headed by Sonia Gandhi, was put "above" the Cabinet during the UPA rule, he added.
While the makers of the Constitution took a considered decision to disallow reservation on the basis of religion and faith in the interest of the country's unity and integrity, the Congress in its "greed for power" and to "appease its vote bank" pushed for it in violation of the constitutional spirit, he said.
His government, Modi said, repealed Article 370 to unify the country and brought in GST to roll out "one nation one tax" regime.
'Our Constitution is the basis of our unity'
He hailed India's journey since the adoption of the Constitution in 1949 as "extraordinary", asserting that the country's ancient democratic roots have long been an inspiration for the world.
India is not only a big democracy but it is the mother of democracy, he said.
Modi said India has resolved to become a developed country by 2047 and its unity is the biggest requirement to achieve the goal. "Our Constitution is the basis of our unity," he said.
Modi said India defied all apprehensions about its democratic future after independence and added its Constitution has brought the country to this stage.
He paid tributes to the makers of the Constitution and the country's citizens for living up to the spirit of its makers.
Those involved in the making of the Constitution were well aware that India was not born in 1947 or turned democratic in 1950, he said, citing remarks of eminent personalities like Purushottam Das Tandon and Bhim Rao Ambedkar.
Women were given voting rights by the Constitution, Modi said, adding the country is now seeing women-led development.
He lauded the parliamentarians for the unanimous passage of the law to give reservation to women in the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies.
Modi hailed India's journey since the adoption of the Constitution in 1949 as "extraordinary", asserting that the country's ancient democratic roots have long been an inspiration for the world.
India is not only a big democracy but it is the mother of democracy, he said in the Lok Sabha replying to a two-day debate on the 75 years of the adoption of the Constitution.
Modi said India has resolved to become a developed country by 2047 and its unity is the biggest requirement to achieve the goal.
"Our Constitution is the basis of our unity," he said.
What Rahul said
Earlier, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, speaking in the House, said, "I want to start my speech by quoting what the Supreme Leader, not of the BJP but of the modern interpretation of the ideas of the RSS has to say about the Constitution of India and about how he thinks India should be run - 'The worst thing about the Constitution of India is that there is nothing Indian about it. Manusmriti is that scripture which is most worshippable after Vedas for our Hindu nation and from which our ancient times have become the basis for our culture, customs, thought and practice. This book, for centuries, has codified the spiritual and divine march of our nation. Today, Manusmiriti is law'. These are the words of Savarkar...Savarkar has clearly stated in his writings that there is nothing Indian about our Constitution. He has clearly stated that the book India is run by should be superseded by this book. This is what the fight is about..."
"Nice that you say you are defending the Constitution, but I want to ask, do you stand by your leader's words? Because when you speak about protecting the Constitution you are abusing, ridiculing Savarkar," Rahul told the BJP.
Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh initiated the motion to discuss the journey of 75 years of the Indian Constitution on Friday (December 13), and he was followed by speakers from the opposition parties.
Also Read: Priyanka's speech: Shades of Indira, packing a punch, yet succinct
Rajnath Singh took a jab at the opposition and said some people were taught to carry the Constitution in their pockets while the BJP bows to it.
Priyanka Gandhi’s direct but restrained speech
Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi was the opening speaker from the Opposition benches, making her maiden speech in Parliament after winning the parliamentary elections in Wayanad last month.
Priyanka’s 32-min speech in Hindi was direct but restrained, without any grandstanding. She covered a range of topics, and dwelt on the BJP’s alleged attempts to change the Constitution, the growing monopoly of the Adani group, atrocities on women, incidents of violence in Manipur and Sambhal, and the demand for a nationwide caste census.
Also Read: Constitution debate: BJP's ploy to isolate Congress from other Opposition parties
She made the point that had it not been for the Lok Sabha results this year, the ruling party would have started changing the Constitution. She alleged that PM Modi has not understood that the Constitution is “Bharat ka Samvidhan” and not “Sangh ka Vidhan” (India’s Constitution and not the Sangh’s rule book).
‘Constitution a protective shield’
The Congress MP described the Constitution as a protective shield of justice, unity, and freedom of expression, and alleged the BJP-led government had made every effort to break it in the past 10 years.
She accused the BJP of only talking about the past and about Jawaharlal Nehru, and said they should tell the country what they were doing now. She emphasised the fact that the Constitution laid the foundation of economic justice, distributing land to farmers, the poor, and the needy.
Akhilesh Yadav’s push for caste census
Akhilesh Yadav, the Samajwadi Party chief, made a renewed push for conducting the caste census. Referring to the violence in Sambhal and the other surveys of places of worship, he said those who were looking for temples under mosques did not want peace.
Also Read: Row over Mahua Moitra’s ‘Judge Loya’ remark in fiery LS speech, Rijiju’s ‘threat’
Mahua Moitra’s intervention elicits vociferous response
Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra in her speech referred to the death of a “judicial officer”. This elicited a vociferous response from the Treasury benches, and Parliamentary Minister Rijiju warned her of “appropriate parliamentary action”.
Moitra accused the BJP-led central government of “bleeding the Constitution from a thousand cuts” and said it is crystal clear that the political executive has “systematically eroded democracy” during the last 10 years.
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- 14 Dec 2024 2:20 PM IST
Rijiju in Lok Sabha: Congress did not give Ambedkar his due
Union minister Kiren Rijiju on Saturday tore into the Congress for not giving BR Ambedkar his due, as he questioned the opposition's claims that minorities were being denied their rights.
Intervening in the debate in the Lok Sabha on 75 years of the adoption of the Constitution, the parliamentary affairs minister cautioned that "our words and actions should not diminish the image of the country in the world fora".
Rijiju was the first speaker on the second day of the debate in the Lower House.
While India has given equal voting rights to all, some claim that minorities have no rights in the country, Rijiju said in an apparent jibe at the opposition.
In his over an hour-long speech, Rijiju suggested that the Congress should "apologise" to Ambedkar to "lessen its sins".
He alleged that "you" (apparently the Congress) made Ambedkar lose in the 1952 parliamentary polls.
Rijiju also questioned the delay in bestowing Ambedkar with the Bharat Ratna and asserted that the chief architect of the Constitution was conferred with India's highest civilian honour after a government supported by the BJP came to power at the Centre.
Continuing his tirade, Rijiju cited Ambedkar as saying that while Jawaharlal Nehru delivered more than 2,000 speeches in 20 years, he never spoke about the welfare of Scheduled Castes "even once".
"Pandit Nehru is always for Muslims," the minister, said quoting Ambedkar.
Citing a document, Rijiju said while Ambedkar wanted reservation indefinitely till equality was achieved, Nehru advocated for it to be in place for 10 years.
A day after several opposition leaders claimed in the Lower House that the rights of minorities were shrinking, the Union minister said India not only provided legal protection to minorities, it also had a provision for affirmative action to protect their interests.
Rijiju said successive governments worked for the welfare of minorities. "The Congress has also done that, I am not undermining its role." The minister also cited a survey to claim that minorities, including Muslims, were facing discrimination and hate crimes in many nations.
The situation in neighbouring Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan where minorities are facing persecution is well-known, he said.
Groups seek refuge in India as they feel this country is safe for them, Rijiju added and wondered why such narratives on minorities' rights were being floated.
- 14 Dec 2024 12:27 PM IST
Priyanka and other Kerala MPs protest for Wayanad relief
Congress’s Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday accused the Centre of denying assistance to landslides-affected people of Wayanad due to politics and asserted that there should be no discrimination in times of natural disasters.
Her remarks came after MPs from Kerala, including her, staged a protest in Parliament premises Saturday, demanding a relief package from the Centre for landslides-hit Wayanad.
Staging their demonstration in front of the steps of the Makar Dwar, the MPs raised slogans calling for “justice for Wayanad”. They also held a banner with ‘"Justice for Wayanad, provide relief package for Wayanad” written on it.
Speaking with reporters, Priyanka said, “We are very disturbed by the fact that the government is refusing to give a special package to Wayanad. We have gone to the home minister, we have written to the prime minister and to everyone possible, to declare that this as a calamity of a severe nature and to give a special package.”
Similar large-scale destruction took place in Himachal Pradesh where the Congress is in power and there also they have been demanding for the longest time that the Centre provides assistance, she said.
“In Wayanad, the whole country has seen the devastation, the pain and suffering of the people and yet just because of politics, the central government, in both cases, is refusing to give what is due to the victims,” she said.
“They are citizens of India. There should be no discrimination in times of natural disasters, in times of pain, in times of suffering of any kind. That is the time when the central government, the PM should be the custodians of every Indian citizen's life and every Indian citizen’s livelihood,” the Congress general secretary said, flanked by the protesting Kerala MPs.
“That is the time they are supposed to set politics aside and give the assistance required. We are actually deeply disappointed because we expected that highlighting this issue, going to them explaining the kind of pain and suffering (that has taken place)...the PM himself has seen.
“We thought out of humanity and compassion what is due to the victims of Wayanad would be given to them,” Priyanka said.
She said the MPs are still hoping the government will have compassion and humanity and do what needs to be done because this is a matter that is above politics. The damage is Rs 2,000 crore but it depends on the government how much it wants to provide, she said.
The disaster, which struck Kerala on July 30, devastated large parts of three villages — Punchirimattam, Chooralmala, and Mundakkai — along with sections of Attamala in Wayanad. According to the government, the disaster claimed 231 lives.
