Will protest if ordinance route is taken: BJP

With the Centre set to to bring ordinances on two anti-corruption bills, BJP on Wednesday said it will register its protest with President Pranab Mukherjee if such a route is adopted.

"Issuing an ordinance is something which should be done in exceptional cases and between two sessions of Parliament. We (BJP) are against the ordinance route at this point of time and will register our protest with the President of India," BJP President Rajnath Singh today said, addressing ward-level party workers here.

Singh alleged that UPA government has been responsible for rampant corruption and scams worth more than Rs 5 lakh crores took place during its regime.

"Congress has now woken up from its slumber and advocating for anti-graft ordinance when the country is getting ready for Lok Sabha elections," Singh said.

Pushed by Rahul Gandhi, the government looks set to soon to bring ordinances on two anti-corruption bills along with three other legislations which could not be passed during the just-concluded Parliament session.

Criticising Rahul Gandhi, Singh asked why didn't he advocate a strong mechanism to root out corruption in the last ten years, even as the Congress-led UPA government "is down with corruption."

Singh said Congress has not declared their Prime Ministerial candidate because it has already conceded defeat ahead of the Lok Sabha polls and were preparing for 2019 general elections.

He claimed NDA gave an unblemished government under the Prime Ministership of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and would do so if Narendra Modi becomes Prime Minister. "I assure you all that there will be a strong system," he said.

He alleged Congress has played divide-and-rule policy whenever in power while BJP on the contrary has maintained social and communal harmony.

Citing a metaphor, he said "as far as the security of this country concerned, we cannot expect security of milk from cat. Similarly, we cannot expect security from Congress," he said.

"Congress is in depression and spewing venom on BJP and the media," he said, apparently referring to Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde alleged outburst against the media.

First Published: Feb 26, 2014 20:11 IST