Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Monday rejected Government’s offer of Prime Minister’s intervention in lalitgate and Vyapam issues in Parliament to break the impasse, insisting that those responsible for “gross wrong-doings” should first resign.
Attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Congress chief said he is conspicuous by his “deafening silence on the blatant transgressions” by his External Affairs Minister and two Chief Ministers. Sonia, who is also the Chairperson of Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP), declared that the Congress will “persist” making its points “forcefully and emphatically” both in Parliament and outside.
“The champion of ‘mann ki baat’ appears to have retreated into a ‘maun vrat’,” Sonia said while lashing out at the Prime Minister and the BJP at the CPP meeting.
The Congress chief added that the party is very clear that there can be “no productive discussion and no meaningful proceedings as long as those responsible for gross wrong-doings remain in office”.
Making a strong pitch for “resign first, debate later” line, Sonia in the CPP meeting wondered whether the BJP has forgotten that it is the “author of the principle which it has used on at least five different occasions since 1993”.
She preceded the remark by saying that since memories are short the party needed to remind its political adversaries who “conveniently are suffering from selective amnesia”.
“Today, we have to listen to sermons on parliamentary behaviour from those who not only defended but also advocated disruption as a legitimate tactic when they were in the Opposition. Yesterday’s agitators in both the Houses have suddenly become today’s champions of debate and discussion,” Sonia said.
Countering the Government allegations against the Congress over disrupting Parliament, Sonia said, “let me say that we are not being aggressive just to match the BJP’s aggression of the past. Insisting that Parliamentary majority does not give anyone a licence to escape accountability. It is our constitutional right and duty to raise our voice against the acts of omission and commission of the Government.”
Taking a dig at the PM, Sonia said Modi has been “very free” while making promises, yet he seems “totally incapable of delivering on them.”