TMC, AAP, CPI to skip new Parliament building's inauguration; others may follow

TMC MP Derek O'Brien slammed PM Modi for making the new Parliament building “all about himself”.

UPDATE | 'Soul of democracy sucked out': 19 Oppn parties, including AAP, Trinamool, unite, to skip Parliament launch

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee in a meeting with Delhi chief minister and AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal. (PTI)

After the Trinamool Congress, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Communist Party of India (CPI) on Tuesday announced they will boycott the inauguration ceremony of the new Parliament building on May 28 and more opposition parties, including the Congress, are likely to join them in protest against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for “not inviting President Droupadi Murmu” to the event.

AAP MP Sanjay Singh said it is a “gross insult” to the President.

“This is an insult to the Dalit tribal and deprived society of India. @AamAadmiParty will boycott the inauguration program in protest against Modi ji not inviting His Excellency the President,” he wrote on Twitter - which the AAP retweeted on its official handle.

CPI general secretary D Raja also said his party will not attend the ceremony. The CPI-M also accused Modi of "bypassing" the President for not just laying the foundation stone for the new parliament building but also by inaugurating it himself

"Modi bypassed the President when the foundation stone for the new Parliament building was laid. Now too at the inauguration. Unacceptable. Constitution Art 79: 'There shall be a Parliament for the Union which shall consist of the President and two Houses…

"Only when the President of India summons the Parliament can it meet. The President begins, annually, Parliamentary functioning by addressing the joint session. The first business Parliament transacts each year is the 'Motion of Thanks' to President's Address," party general secretary Sitaram Yechury tweeted.

Earlier, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and CPI said that they will not attend the inaugural ceremony.

TMC MP Derek O'Brien slammed Modi for making the new Parliament building “all about himself”. “Parliament is not just a new building; it is an establishment with old traditions, values, precedents and rules - it is the foundation of Indian democracy. PM Modi doesn’t get that. For him, Sunday’s inauguration of the new building is all about I, ME, MYSELF. So count us out,” he wrote on Twitter.

Meanwhile, several opposition parties, including Congress, are likely to unitedly skip the ceremony, however, a final decision on it will be taken on Wednesday, reported news agency PTI.

Modi is scheduled to inaugurate the new Parliament building on May 28 at 12 pm in the national capital. According to the Lok Sabha secretariat, the new building offers spacious seats, the latest facilities, and tablets on each desk. Arrangements have been made for a meeting of 888 members in the Lok Sabha as compared to the current 543, and for 384 members in the Rajya Sabha as compared to the current 250 seats, it added.