Rajya Sabha LIVE | 'Those who burnt copies of Constitution are trying to teach us': Kharge
Opening the debate in the Rajya Sabha, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said India's Constitution has stood the test of time in the last 75 years of its existence.
Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday (December 16) slammed the BJP-RSS, saying those who burnt the copies of the Constitution and the effigies of Babasaheb Ambedkar are “trying to teach us about it”.
Leading the charge from the Opposition benches, Kharge said, “Those people who hate national flag, those who hate our 'Ashok Chakra', those who hate the Constitution... such people are trying to teach us. What is this? When this Constitution was made...these people burn the Constitution. They torched effigies of Babasaheb Ambedkar, Jawaharlal Nehru, Mahatma Gandhi at Ramleela Maidan (in Delhi) the day the Constitution was adopted.”
He also took a jibe at Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, saying, “I have to tell them that I also know how to read. I have studied in municipality school, she (Nirmala Sitharaman) has studied in Jawaharlal Nehru University, it is certain that her English will be good, her Hindi will be good, but the deeds are not good.”
Also read: PM a ‘distorian’ who ‘puts WhatsApp University to shame’: Congress after speech
Raising the issue of the alleged atrocities on the minorities in Bangladesh, Kharge said, “...Our brave leader Indira Gandhi divided Pakistan into two parts and liberated Bangladesh... The pride of this country spread across the world. The chaos that is going on there (in Bangladesh), at least these (BJP) people should open their eyes and try to save the minorities there.”
Earlier, opening the debate in the Rajya Sabha on "75 years of Indian Constitution", Sitharaman said India's Constitution has stood the test of time in the last 75 years of its existence.
Heated debate in Lok Sabha
The debate in the Lok Sabha was initiated on Friday (December 13) by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, followed by speeches by Opposition MPs including Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, and Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, among others.
On Saturday (December 14), Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi spoke at length.
While the opposition parties accused the BJP-led central government of undermining the Constitution, PM Modi accused the Congress party of repeatedly “mutilating” the Constitution.
The Congress on Saturday termed PM Modi’s 11 resolutions he articulated in his speech in the Lok Sabha as “hollow”, and called him a “distorian par excellence who puts WhatsApp University to shame”.
The opposition party also questioned why PM Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh were not present in the House when Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi spoke during the debate.
Also read: Ready for Constitution debate in Rajya Sabha 'if BJP doesn't disrupt': O'Brien
RS debate in backdrop of no-trust vote against Dhankhar
The debate in the Rajya Sabha will be in the backdrop of a no-trust motion against Vice President and Rajya Sabha chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar by Opposition parties which have submitted a notice for it.
According to sources, 10-11 MPs will participate in the debate, and will speak for 3-4 minutes each. They will highlight the essence of ten keywords from the Preamble of the Constitution, speaking on themes like equality, justice, sovereignty, independence, democracy, and socialism.
The Rajya Sabha will hold the debate on December 16 and 17, and PM Modi is expected to reply on Tuesday (December 17).
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- 16 Dec 2024 3:29 PM IST
Priyanka makes a statement with 'Palestine' bag in Parliament, BJP takes a dig
Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra turned heads in Parliament on Monday, arriving with a bag emblazoned with "Palestine" on it. A photo of Priyanka Gandhi toting around the bag on Parliament premises was shared on social media by Congress spokesperson Shama Mohamed. It also invited a snide dig from BJP leader Sambit Patra.
"The Gandhi family has always been carrying the bag of appeasement. The appeasement bag is the reason behind their rout in elections," Patra said during a press briefing. Gandhi's gesture comes days after she was seen sporting a black-and-white keffiyeh (a traditional Palestinian scarf) during a meeting with Palestine embassy charge d'affaires Abed Elrazeg Abu Jazer.
