Emboldened by support from most Opposition parties, the Congress on Tuesday launched a frontal attack on the Narendra Modi Government over the suspension of 25 of its MPs, terming it as “murder of democracy” and demanding that the Prime Minister hear the “voice of the country”.
The party did not allow the Rajya Sabha to function and shouted slogans against Modi in the Well of the Upper House. Party sources said the same strategy to stall the proceedings of the Rajya Sabha, where the party is in majority, will continue for the remaining part of the Monsoon Session.
An agitated Congress president Sonia Gandhi led the protest from the front accompanied by the party’s second-in-command Rahul Gandhi and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. They, along with party MPs sat on a dharna in the Parliament House complex in front of Mahatma Gandhi’s statue. “Suspension of our MPs is anti-democratic. Democracy is being murdered,” said Sonia.
“Down with Modi! We want justice!” chanted Congress MPs as they sat near Mahatma Gandhi’s statue, wearing black armbands as a mark of protest. Opposition parties like the Samajwadi Party and the RJD joined them in the protest.
The Congress MPs faced action after they did not allow the lok Sabha to function, demanding the resignation of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje for allegedly helping former IPl commissioner lalit Modi and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan over the Vyapam scam.
Rahul stressed that his party will not budge from its stand and there will be no let up in the pressure on the Government as far as issues of corruption are concerned. Rahul threatened that the Congress will “protest against the Modi Government across the country.” Street protests were also organised in several places including Kolkata, lucknow, Srinagar and Jammu.
Top party leaders including Ghulam Nabi Azad, AK Antony, Anand Sharma, and Mallikarjun Kharge raised slogans against the Speaker’s decision.
Rahul Gandhi took a swipe at the Prime Minister saying though he made his voice heard through his radio programme ‘Mann ki Baat’, he was not prepared to listen to the “voice of the country”. “I am not asking for their resignation, the Congress is not asking for their resignation but the people of India are asking for their resignation. I am only trying to explain to the PM the voice of the people of the country. The Prime Minister has the habit of making his voice heard (Mann ki Baat), let him listen to the voice of the country,” he said.
SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav said the decision by the lok Sabha Speaker is “unlawful” and that she should reconsider it. Besides the Congress, MPs of the Trinamool Congress and NCP boycotted lok Sabha proceedings and those of the left, SP and RJD walked out soon after the House met.
Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said the suspension of 25 Congress MPs was “no way” to resolve the issue. “The Congress has raised (the issues) before the country, before the Government and before Parliament. We want Parliament to run smoothly. It is the responsibility of the Government to take into account the concerns that we have been voicing. Certain Ministers whose conduct is not in line with... Parliamentary traditions... We are fully justified in demanding that these Ministers should be asked to submit their resignation,” Singh said.
When Rajya Sabha assembled for the day, over two dozen Congress members, mostly wearing black armbands and carrying placards, rushed to the Well of the House raising anti-Government slogans as soon as the House met. One of them also waved a black cloth but was sternly asked not to do so by Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien. Kurien sought to bring some order chiding the members for the “height of indiscipline”.
Rahul Gandhi also took a swipe at the Centre’s U-turn on the land Bill and said it “ran off” after “threatening” and “shouting” in the face of resistance by the Congress and vowed that the party will similarly keep up pressure for resignations in lalitgate and Vyapam issues. “On the land issue, Congress stood in front of them. They (Government) shouted, made too much noise, threatened and later made a U-turn and ran off,” Rahul said, a day after BJP members in a parliamentary panel moved amendments to restore provisions of the UPA’s land law.