New Delhi, March 10 Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Tuesday criticized the Congress for the no-confidence motion against Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, saying he has always remained impartial and has given more opportunities to opposition members to express their views in the House.
Participating in the debate on the resolution to remove Birla from the Speaker's post, Rijiju accused the Congress of attacking constitutional institutions since 2014, when it was ousted from power, and said that this time the target is the Speaker's position, which is "akin to an attack on democracy itself".
During his hour-long intervention, the Minister strongly defended Birla's actions and quoted former prime ministers Jawaharlal Nehru and Rajiv Gandhi to reiterate that the Speaker's decision is final on matters in the Lok Sabha and should be accepted by all.
The minister claimed that 50 opposition members told him personally that they were not happy with the resolution against Birla but had to support it due to political pressure.
Rijiju also criticized the Leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi, claiming that he has shown immaturity in his conduct, often skipping proceedings to travel abroad and leaving after his speech, disregarding the rules of the House. The minister went on to say that Congress member Priyanka Gandhi Vadra could be a better Leader of the Opposition than Rahul Gandhi.
Rijiju said that everyone, including the prime minister and other ministers, needs the permission of the Speaker to address the Lok Sabha, as the Speaker is the custodian of the House.
"If someone believes that he is above the Speaker, then there is no remedy," he said, referring to Rahul Gandhi's remark that it is his right to speak in the House and does not need anyone's permission.
Without naming Rahul Gandhi, Rijiju said that the Congress leader has shown immaturity by hugging Prime Minister Modi in the House and also winking at his party colleagues during a serious debate.
Rijiju said that he used to go on overseas visits during the session and often leaves the House after his speech, disregarding the rules.
The minister cited statistics to rebut the opposition's charge of favoritism against the Speaker and said that Birla has always remained impartial, giving more opportunity to opposition members to ask supplementary questions and to raise matters of public importance.
Birla, in his tenure as Speaker, took several decisions to reform the House proceedings, such as making Parliament paperless and giving opportunities to young members to speak, Rijiju said.
"I say with pride that I am a member of the Lok Sabha, of which Om Birla is the Speaker. He has helped strengthen Parliamentary democracy," the minister said.
He said that the NDA members have never torn papers or climbed on the Secretary General's table, unlike the Congress MPs.
He said that despite all the good work done by Birla, the Congress party, "instead of being thankful to the Speaker, brought a no-confidence motion against him".
"You should not harbour so much hatred against Birla that you forget the good work done by him," Rijiju said.
The minister also asserted that the mudslinging against Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not yield any result as he is "as pure as a lotus".