Sonia Gandhi Criticizes PM Modi Over Emergency Remarks and Other Issues

During the first session of Parliament, there were heated debates between the government and the opposition about the deputy Speaker position and the NEET issue. Congress leader Sonia Gandhi commented that Prime Minister Narendra Modi seems to prefer confrontation, even though he often talks about the importance of consensus.

In an editorial for The Hindu, Sonia Gandhi mentioned that PM Modi has not fully accepted the Lok Sabha election results, which saw the NDA return to power with a reduced mandate.

“The Prime Minister acts as if nothing has changed. He talks about consensus but prefers confrontation,” said the Rajya Sabha MP.

“The initial days of the 18th Lok Sabha have been disappointing. Any hope for a change in attitude has been crushed,” she added.

Sonia Gandhi, who chairs the Congress Parliamentary Party, argued that the Deputy Speaker position in the Lok Sabha should have gone to the opposition, following tradition.

“This reasonable request was rejected by a government that didn’t fill the Deputy Speaker position in the 17th Lok Sabha,” she said.

During the first term of the NDA government, M Thambi Durai of the AIADMK, a BJP ally, was the Deputy Speaker. However, the position remained vacant from 2019 to 2024.

On the Emergency

The BJP has been attacking the Congress by bringing up the Emergency. Sonia Gandhi said the Prime Minister is using this issue to distract from current constitutional issues.

Gandhi found it “astonishing” that even the Speaker, who should remain impartial, brought up the Emergency.

“In March 1977, the people gave a clear verdict on the Emergency, which was accepted without hesitation. Less than three years later, the party that was defeated in 1977 returned to power with a majority that Modi and his party have never achieved,” she said.

The President and Vice President also mentioned the Emergency in their address to Parliament, calling it the “darkest chapter” and a “direct attack on the Constitution.”

On NEET Paper Leak

Sonia Gandhi criticized PM Modi for staying silent on the NEET paper leak scandal, which affected the lives of many young people.

“The Prime Minister, who holds ‘Pariksha pe Charcha,’ has been notably silent on the leaks that have devastated many families,” she said.

She also pointed out that the professionalism of educational institutions like the National Council of Educational Research and Training, the University Grants Commission, and universities has been severely damaged over the past decade.

On Manipur Ethnic Violence

The former Congress chief also criticized the Prime Minister for not visiting Manipur, where ethnic clashes have been ongoing since May 2023.

Hundreds have been killed, and thousands displaced due to the conflict between the Kuki and Meitei communities.

“Social harmony in this sensitive state has been destroyed. Yet, the Prime Minister has neither found the time nor the inclination to visit the state or meet its political leaders,” Gandhi wrote.

BJP Counters, INDIA Allies React

In response to Sonia Gandhi’s editorial, BJP leader and former Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi accused her of arrogance and suggested she should reflect on her family’s past before criticizing PM Modi.

However, Sonia Gandhi received support from her INDIA bloc allies, RJD and Shiv Sena (UBT).

RJD MP Manoj Jha said the Congress leader had shown the government a mirror. “Even today, there is an Emergency in the country,” Jha said.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut also criticized the Prime Minister, calling the Lok Sabha result Modi’s “personal defeat.”

“This same Modi talked about winning over 400 seats on his own and used to call Rahul Gandhi a prince. But the prince has defeated you. Now, you are in power only by making deals,” Raut said.

Published By: Abhishek De Published On: Jun 29, 2024