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Rahul Gandhi denigrated LoP post: Vaishnaw, Rijiju
Union parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju said the BJP has approached Speaker Om Birla for action in the matter.
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi denigrated the position of the Leader of Opposition (LoP) to a level that is “condemnable”, with his “irresponsible” speech in the Lok Sabha on Monday, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said, as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) attacked the lawmaker over his remarks against the ruling party and claims about the Agnipath scheme for recruitment in the armed forces.
While Vaishnaw accused Gandhi of “misleading” Parliament through a series of statements, Union parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju said the BJP has approached Speaker Om Birla for action in the matter.
This came after Gandhi, in his maiden speech as LoP on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s address earlier in the day, said BJP leaders were “not Hindus” and accused them of promoting violence against minorities. He also claimed that an Agniveer is not called a ‘jawan’ and that they will not get a pension for their service of four years.
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Hitting out at the Congress lawmaker, Vaishnaw said BJP leaders like former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, L K Advani and Sushma Swaraj were LoPs at different points of time and brought responsibility and seriousness to the position.
“Gandhi has always enjoyed power without responsibility. Now he holds a responsible position. But he made the most irresponsible speech today,” he told reporters.
Gandhi had once torn apart an ordinance of his own party’s government, he said, referring to the ordinance passed by the UPA Cabinet to protect Parliamentarians from disqualification in case they are convicted in any case.
“He (Gandhi) made some objectionable remarks in Parliament today. He said that martyrs will not receive compensation under the Agnipath scheme. This is a big lie. During Gandhi’s speech, defence minister Rajnath Singh said martyrs under the Agnipath speech will be given a compensation of ₹1 crore. The Congress has always made such remarks against the armed forces and tried to mislead the public,” Vaishnaw said.
“He tried to mislead Parliament... he said compensation was not paid to farmers in Ayodhya, whereas ₹253 crore was paid to over 4,000 shopkeepers. The most important issue is that he insulted Hindus. In 2010, then home minister P Chidambaram called Hindus terrorists; in 2013 Sushilkumar Shinde said the same. In 2021, Rahul Gandhi said ‘Hindutvavadis’ should be expelled,” he added.
In his speech, Gandhi claimed “the people of Ayodhya lost their land and they were not allowed at the inauguration of the Ram Temple”.
Vaishnaw said that Gandhi lowered the dignity of polity to a level that is “condemnable”. The Congress leader’s act of displaying pictures of gods and linking Hindus to violence is “unpardonable”, he said.
During his speech, Gandhi launched a sharp attack on the ruling BJP, asserting that Hinduism is not about spreading fear, hatred and falsehoods. He also held up a picture of Lord Shiva, saying: “If you look at Lord Shiva’s image, you know Hindus can never spread fear and hatred, but the BJP spreads fear and hatred 24*7.”
Rijiju also criticised Gandhi’s remarks in the House and said the BJP has challenged many of the latter’s claims and has sought action from the Speaker.
“We have made a request to the Speaker to pass a direction that if we have made an unverified statement, then we are ready to take a corrective course. But if the Leader of Opposition has lied in the House, then he will have to face the rules and regulations of the House. He (Speaker) has already assured the House that he will give necessary and appropriate directions in this regard,” he said.
BJP president JP Nadda sought an apology from Gandhi. “Rahul Gandhi Ji must immediately APOLOGISE to all Hindus for terming them as violent. This is the same person who was telling foreign diplomats that Hindus are terrorists. This intrinsic hate towards Hindus must stop.”
Ayodhya MP Awadhesh Prasad, however, said Gandhi did not make remarks about Hindus. “He spoke about the mindset of the BJP and the ideology of the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh). His statement was not for Hindus but for the people of the BJP and the RSS,” he said.
