Press Trust of indiaNew Delhi: Opposition leaders hit back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his “Emergency” remark on Monday, calling the 10 years of his government an “undeclared emergency”.
Slamming Modi over his remarks, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said the prime minister delivered a longer-than-usual customary address “but clearly, even after the moral and political defeat, the arrogance remains”.
He said the country was hoping that Modi would say something on important issues.
“Narendra Modiji, you are giving advice to the opposition. You are reminding us of the 50-year-old Emergency, but have forgotten the last 10 years of undeclared emergency, which was ended by the people,” Kharge said in a post on X.
“People have given their mandate against Modiji. Despite this, if he has become the Prime Minister, then he should work,” he added.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the prime minister has shown no evidence that he has understood the true meaning of the people’s verdict, “which saw him eking out only a narrow and dubious win in Varanasi”.
“The non-biological PM who suffered a resounding personal, political and moral defeat in the Lok Sabha elections has just given his usual ‘desh ke naam sandesh’ outside the Parliament as the 18th Lok Sabha prepares to commence its tenure. He has said nothing new and as usual, resorted to diversion,” Ramesh said on X.
“Let him be under no doubt: the INDIA Janbandhan will hold him to account for every minute. He stands brutally exposed,” the Congress leader added.
Asked about Modi’s remarks on Emergency, Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav evaded a direct reply and said, “I thank the wise people of India, who voted to protect the Constitution. The people got tired waiting for achche din (good days). I hope the people will have happy days in the future.”
Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Mahua Moitra said the ruling BJP fell short of a majority in the recently-held Lok Sabha polls as the people of the country have realised that it is against the Constitution.
“From 303, the BJP is down to 240 seats. It is running a minority government. It kept saying ‘400 paar’ but could not even get a simple majority.
“The only reason is that the people of the country have understood that there is the BJP on one side and the Constitution on the other. The people have chosen the Constitution,” Moitra said.
She also alleged that there was an “undeclared emergency” in the country under the BJP’s rule.
“I was not born during the first Emergency, but they (BJP) had been running an undeclared emergency for the last 10 years and the people of the country said it would not be allowed,” the TMC leader said.
Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Anil Desai said the Emergency period is long over and the government should focus on the present.
“The Emergency period has gone, but what is the situation today? No one likes recalling the Emergency…. I hope the dark days do not return,” he said.
Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) leader N K Premachandran also said talking about the 1975 Emergency is “insignificant” at this juncture.
“It happened in 1975. Fifty years have lapsed. It is totally irrelevant. We are talking about things that are happening at present. It is insignificant talking about the 1975 Emergency at this juncture,” he said.
Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) MP Chandrashekhar said the prime minister should follow his own advice.
“It would have been good if what he is saying reflected in his work. In this Parliament itself, more than 140 MPs were suspended and laws passed. Hope this government, which is not as popular, will respect the people’s sentiment and not impose any law on them,” he said.
“The Constitution is the foundation of this country,” Chandrashekhar asserted.
In his customary remarks ahead of the commencement of the 18th Lok Sabha, Modi said the country needs a responsible opposition as people want substance, not slogans. He said people want debate, diligence and not disturbance in Parliament.
The prime minister said people expect good steps from the opposition, but it has been disappointing so far and expressed hope that it will fulfil its role and maintain decorum.
Taking a swipe at the Congress without naming it, Modi said the anniversary of Emergency falls on June 25 and termed it a black spot on India’s parliamentary history, when the Constitution was discarded and the country turned into a prison.
Opposition members wave copies of Constitution on first day of 18th Lok Sabha
In a show of strength, the opposition INDIA bloc members on Monday waved copies of the Constitution in Parliament as Prime Minister Narendra Modi took oath as a member of the 18th Lok Sabha.
Home Minister Amit Shah was also greeted in a similar manner. Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan took oath as Lok Sabha member amid chants of NEET-NET by the opposition members even as a controversy is raging on the entrance examinations that has put the government in the dock.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Trinamool leader Kalyan Banerjee, and Samajwadi Party leaders Akhilesh Yadav and Awadhesh Prasad were seated in the first row in the opposition benches.
In a prestige battle, Prasad defeated the two-time sitting BJP MP Lallu Singh from Faizabad, the constituency that comprises Ayodhya, by a margin of 54,567 votes.
Congress member Kodikunnil Suresh, DMK’s T R Baalu and Trinamool Congress’ member Sudip Bandyopadhyay walked out of the House when the oath-taking began as a mark of protest over the appointment of Mahtab as pro-tem Speaker.
The three opposition members were named on the panel of chairpersons to assist the pro-tem Speaker. The panel of chairpersons was administered oath immediately after Prime Minister Modi who is the leader of the 18th Lok Sabha.
With Suresh, Baalu and Bandyopadhyay choosing to remain absent, the other two members named on the panel — BJP Radha Mohan Singh and Faggan Singh Kulaste were administered oath after the Prime Minister.
The opposition members were heard raising the slogan “violation of Constitution” when the panel was sworn in.
Hugs and greetings marked the beginning of the 18th Lok Sabha as members walked into the cavernous chamber of the lower house, with some touching the threshold reverentially as they embarked on the journey as public representatives.
First term lawmaker Bansuri Swaraj, the daughter of BJP stalwart late Sushma Swaraj, was among the early entrants to the Lok Sabha chamber. She mingled with the fellow members, exchanging greetings and clicking photographs.
Members of the TDP, a key ally of the BJP, sported yellow scarves while the Samajwadi Party members walked in the Lok Sabha chamber wearing red caps and pale-red coloured ‘gamchas’. They waved copies of the Hindi version of the Constitution.
TDP’s K Ram Mohan Naidu, the youngest member of the Union cabinet, hugged fellow minister Chirag Paswan of the LJP(RV) and warmly greeted Arvind Sawant of the Shiv Sena (UBT).
Actor-politician Ravi Kishan of the BJP came to the House dressed in a dhoti-kurta, while Anita Chouhan, the first-term BJP member from Ratlam in Madhya Pradesh, donned traditional attire.
BJP member from Meerut, Arun Govil, who played the role of Lord Ram in television serial Ramayan, was seen going around and greeting fellow members as he began his political innings.
Another actor-politician Kangana Ranaut, who won for the first time on a BJP ticket from Mandi in Himachal Pradesh, entered the Lok Sabha chamber wearing a white saree.
Both Ranaut and Govil were seen seated in the eighth and the ninth rows respectively.
Former Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla was seated in the third row.
