New Delhi, March 11 – Union Home Minister Amit Shah launched a scathing attack on the Congress party and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday, questioning the “seriousness” and “authenticity” of his claims that he is being silenced within the House.
Shah cited numerous instances from the past, when the prominent Congress leader was found wanting due to his frequent foreign trips and his reluctance to participate in key debates, ranging from “Vande Mataram” to the land acquisition bill.
“The Leader of the Opposition claims that he is not allowed to speak in the House, but I want to say that he doesn’t want to speak,” Amit Shah said in response to Congress’s accusations.
Responding to KC Venugopal’s charge that the Leader of the Opposition was interrupted a dozen times by the Speaker, he asked, “When the errant leader doesn’t listen, what do you think the Speaker should do?”
Shah asserted that Rahul Gandhi’s attendance in the 17th Lok Sabha was 51 per cent, against the national average of 67 per cent. In the 16th Lok Sabha, his attendance was 52 per cent against the national average of 80 per cent.
“In the 15th Lok Sabha, his attendance was 43 per cent while the national average was 76 per cent,” he added.
Shah said that the Congress MP did not participate in most debates, including the Motion of Thanks to the President’s address, the budget discussion, and key bills, and even did not participate in discussions on the most important bills.
He also criticized Rahul for his repeated foreign visits and stated that the Congress MP chooses to go abroad when the House is in session.
“When Parliament sessions are underway, he plans foreign trips. How can he speak here from abroad? There is no provision for video conferencing,” Shah added.
Amit Shah also made references to Rahul’s “hugs and winks” inside the Parliament, wondering how any member could engage in such antics and still claim the moral high ground.
The Congress-led Opposition, furious over HM Shah’s repeated references to LoP Rahul’s absence from the House, said that the debate was on the Speaker’s “biased and partisan” behavior and not on the former’s conduct and demanded intervention from the Chair.
As the Home Minister kept the heat on, the House erupted in intense chaos and pandemonium, with Opposition members resorting to intense sloganeering in the House.