PM Modi to inaugurate new Parliament building, high seat of Indian democracy, today
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the country's new Parliament complex on Sunday, marking the end of three years of construction work.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Sunday inaugurate the country’s new Parliament complex, in an occasion that will represent a landmark shift to a new building that will house the heart of India’s democracy, amid an acerbic tussle between the Centre and several Opposition parties, who stayed firm on their plan to boycott the event.
Sunday’s inauguration will mark the end of three years of construction work and showcase the highlight of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Union government’s ambitious Central Vista revamp project. The new building is aimed at providing greater space and comfort for parliamentarians and modern amenities not available in its predecessor.
The sprawling complex will also symbolise the replacement of India’s existing, iconic, colonial-era Parliament building, built in 1927, which served as the seat of the country’s popular will for 75 years.
Read: How new Parliament building is different from the existing one
On Saturday afternoon, Modi, retweeting a video of the new Parliament, said, “May this Temple of Democracy continue strengthening India’s development trajectory and empowering millions.”
In a second tweet, Modi added, “Several people are expressing their joy on #MyParliamentMyPride. Through very emotional voice-overs they are conveying a spirit of pride that our nation is getting a new Parliament which will keep working to fulfil people’s aspirations with more vigour.”
The ceremony has already been awash in controversy after 21 opposition parties — including the Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Trinamool Congress and Samajwadi Party — decided to keep away from the event, arguing that President Droupadi Murmu should have presided over the inauguration, not Prime Minister Modi.
Congress leader Gourav Vallabh on Saturday accused the Union government of “destroying the traditional customs of the country’s democratic framework.”
For their part, the government and the BJP have urged the opposition parties to rethink their decision and called the boycott an insult to democracy.
Union minister Anurag Thakur on Saturday called the boycott an “insult”.
“It is a different matter that some people got barred from Parliament. Earlier, they used to find excuses for not allowing Parliament to function. Now, they are talking of boycott which is also an insult,” he said, seemingly referring to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification from Parliament after his conviction in a defamation case.
The event is expected to begin at 7.30am, said people aware of the matter, with a puja at the sprawling new complex, to be conducted in the presence of 21 religious leaders, or Adheenams, who flew in from Chennai on Saturday.
Modi met the Adheenams on Saturday at his residence, where they handed him the 5-ft-long sceptre, or “Sengol’’, which will be installed near the Lok Sabha speaker’s seat as a symbolic transfer of power.
This has also emerged as a key point of contention between Opposition parties and the Centre.
The Congress has questioned the government’s assertion that the “Sengol” was used to symbolise the transfer of power at the moment of India’s Independence, though the BJP dismissed the criticism saying the opposition party disliked Indian culture.
Read: ‘Left in the lurch, labelled walking stick’: Modi jabs Congress over ‘Sengol’
After the Sengol is installed on Sunday, Modi will lead a ceremony inside the new Lok Sabha chamber, which can accommodate nearly 900 people. The programme will also showcase modern facilities of the new building, which is likely to start functioning from the monsoon session in July.
Political tensions have simmered for days now over the PM’s decision to open the building.
Opposition parties said that as the President summons, prorogues and addresses Parliament, and her assent is a must for any act to become law, her not inaugurating the building is an insult to her office.
“It undermines the spirit of inclusion which saw the nation celebrate its first woman adivasi President,” said a statement released by 19 Opposition groups on Wednesday. The list of signatories also included the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), Janata Dal (United), Nationalist Congress Party, Communist Party of India (Marxist), Rashtriya Janata Dal, Indian Union Muslim League, National Conference, Communist Party of India, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, Kerala Congress (Mani), Vidhuthalai Chirunthaigal Katchi, Rashtriya Lok Dal, Revolutionary Socialist Party, and Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.
Separately, two more parties, the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), also said they would stay away from the event.
Read: India to get new Parliament building: 10 things you should know about complex
Leaders of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) pushed back against the Opposition’s decision.
A statement by the alliance — signed, among others, by BJP chief JP Nadda, Shiv Sena’s Eknath Shinde and Meghalaya CM Conrad Sangma — said the decision to boycott the ceremony “is not merely disrespectful; it is a blatant affront to the democratic ethos and constitutional values of our great nation”.
To be sure, not all non-BJP parties are boycotting the event. The Biju Janata Dal (BJD), YSR Congress Party, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), Janata Dal (Secular), Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), Telugu Desam Party (TDP) have said they will attend the event.
Meanwhile on Saturday, Lok Sabha officials remained at work, sharpening and rehearsing numerous drills, along with briefings by security personnel to ensure that Sunday’s proceedings go off without a hitch.
Security across Lutyens’ Delhi will be amped up on Sunday, with a host of checks in place, police officers have said.
A total of 80 companies will be deployed across the Capital, senior police officers said. They added that 45 companies from the total force will be deployed in the New Delhi district alone, which will include 15 companies of women personnel. One company has 70 personnel.
Traffic restrictions will also be in place till 3pm on roads around the Parliament complex.