Sanjay Raut calls new Parliament ‘5-star jail’, pledges shifting to old building

The Bharatiya Janata Party has been claiming that the ruling NDA will cross 400 seats in upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Published on: Feb 29, 2024, 12:55:01 IST

By HT News Desk

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Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Thursday launched a scathing criticism of the current parliamentary setup, likening the new parliament building to a "five-star jail" where productivity is severely hampered.

New Delhi: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut at the Parliament House complex during the Budget session, in New Delhi, Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2024. (PTI)

“One should see the condition of Central Vista in New Delhi” Raut told media persons, expressing frustration over the problems faced by legislators.

“The new parliament is like a five-star jail where you can't work,” the Rajya Sabha member said.

Raut further announced his party's intention to relocate parliamentary sessions to the historical old parliament building if the opposition INDIA bloc is voted to power at the Centre.

“When we form our government, we will start our parliament session in our historical parliament,” he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the country's new parliament building in Delhi in May 2023. The building which was built at a cost of ₹971 crore, can accommodate 888 members in the Lok Sabha and 300 members in the Rajya Sabha. However, several teething issues came to the fore after the proceedings shifted to the new building during a special session of Parliament in September. Some opposition MPs complained that one needed binoculars to see each other in the complex.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) leader also mocked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over its claims of the ruling coalition winning more than 400 seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

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When asked about his response to BJP's ambitious target, Raut said the people of Maharashtra would have clapped if they had boasted of winning 600 seats in the 543-member Lok Sabha.

“PM Modi should set a target of 600 instead of 400 for the 2024 elections,” he said.

On Wednesday, Raut said that members of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance have agreed on a seat-sharing formula in Maharashtra for the coming Lok Sabha elections and it would be announced soon. In the 2019 general elections, the BJP had won 23 Lok Sabha seats in the state, its alliance partner Shiv Sena (which was then undivided) had won 18 seats, undivided NCP had won four while Congress and AIMIM had won a seat each. An independent candidate had won one seat.

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