PM Narendra Modi blames Congress for Partition
NEW DELHI : During his speech on the motion of thanks to the President’s address to Parliament, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a scathing attack on the Congress party. During his speech in the Rajya Sabha, Modi said Gandhi too wanted Congress to be disbanded after Independence.
He tore into the Congress party in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, accusing it of “partitioning” the country and also scuttling democracy during the past 70 years.
“Aapko Gandhi Ji wala Bharat chahaiye, mujhe bhi Gandhi Ji wala Bharat chahiye. Gandhi Ji ne kaha tha ab aazaadi mil gayi, ab Congress ki zaroorat nahi hai (You want Gandhi’s India, I also want Gandhi’s India. Gandhi said now that we have achieved Independence, there is no need for Congress),” said Modi to applause form his party men.
Taking on the critics for calling his government a name-changer not game-changer, Modi said we are ‘aim-changer’ and committed to bring change. His attack included barbs on Congress president Rahul Gandhi and former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, who he accused of being undemocratic.
Defending the idea of once nation, one poll, the PM urges parliamentarians to rise above party politics and have a constructive discussion on holding simultaneous Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections in the various states.
His attack on the Opposition party – interspersed with statistical claims of his having achieved much more than what was done during UPA days – came amid relentless slogan-shouting by Congress MPs, who also waved placards regarding Andhra Pradesh and the Rafale deal in the Well of the House.“More than 90 times Article 356 was used to dismiss state governments,” he added.
The credit should go to Congress for misleading everyone on One Rank One Pension for army personnel for over 40 years. The credit should go to Congress for starting more than 1,500 railway projects, which never started.
Mr. Modi also accused the Congress of being unjust to Andhra Pradesh. He said the Congress had picked N. Sanjeeva Reddy as its Presidential candidate but he was given short shrift and another candidate was supported.
The reference was to the Presidential election of 1969 when Indira Gandhi backed V.V. Giri as President against Mr. Reddy during her fight with the party clique called the Syndicate and finally gave a call for a vote of conscience, leading to Mr. Reddy losing the election.
Mr. Modi also attacked the late Rajiv Gandhi: “Rajiv Gandhi landed at the Hyderabad airport. Your Chief Minister belonging to the Scheduled Caste, T. Anjaiah, was present. He (Rajiv Gandhi) openly insulted him.” “The TDP was born out of the fire of that insult,” Mr. Modi said.
Significantly, TDP MPs were continuing their protest in the Well of the House when the Prime Minister entered the Lok Sabha just before his speech. Congress members then assembled in the Well of the House to raise slogans in favour of Andhra Pradesh’s demands, in a bid to score points and also drown the PM’s voice.
Mr. Modi also made specific mentions of Congress president Rahul Gandhi publicly tearing a Cabinet decision – a reference to the Ordinance, supposed to offer relief to convicted legislators from impending disqualification, being dramatically torn by Mr. Gandhi in 2013 – to accuse him of being undemocratic.
Asserting that the Congress had full power after independence and could have used it to make India a developed country, Mr. Modi said they frittered away the opportunity praising “one family”.
PM Modi: Look at what all you mocked – Swachh Bharat, Make in India, surgical strikes, Yoga Day. You are free to mock as you please but why are you blocking the bill for OBC Commission? Why are you blocking Triple Talaq Bill. Are you not sensitive to the aspirations of OBCs ? If you feel so strongly about bringing changes to Triple Talaq Bill, then you should have brought the law yourself, when you were in power for so many years.
Keep women empowerment above politics.Who stopped you from taking decision on triple talaq? The issue was pending with you for over 30 years, but you did not act asked Modi.
The PM says that being in power for more than 50 years has made it cut off from the ground realities. Accusing the Congress of not wanting to be a part of the ‘New India’, he says that (Congress) people sitting here “need that India where there is emergency… you need that India where there is tandoor case… you want the India where Sikhs are killed… you need that India where Bhopal gas tragedy accused are set free.”
Meanwhile, Congress President Rahul Gandhi has been quick to take a jibe at the PM through a tweet, saying that although he is giving a long speech, he remained silent on matters of importance to the nation and tried to cover up the failures of his government. Gandhi also raised the question of Rafale jet deal again and asked when the PM will break his silence on the issue. (With Agency Inputs ).
