Who does he listen to: Rahul launches sharp attack on PM Modi
Rahul Gandhi’s speech got a sharp rebuttal from Union minister Smriti Irani, who slammed the Opposition leader for talking ill about “Mother India” and argued that in the history of the Lok Sabha, such expressions had never been used.
In his first speech after reinstatement in the Lok Sabha, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi alleged on Wednesday that the idea of “Mother India”, or Bharat Mata, has been destroyed in Manipur and accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of not listening to the voice of the people.
Referring to the Ramayana, Gandhi said that Lanka was not burnt by Hanuman but due to the arrogance of Ravana, implying that the arrogance of the government was leading to violence across the country. He alleged that the ruling dispensation has been “sprinkling kerosene all across the country” to burn it.
Gandhi’s speech got a sharp rebuttal from Union minister Smriti Irani, who slammed the Opposition leader for talking ill about “Mother India” and argued that in the history of the Lok Sabha, such expressions had never been used.
Participating in the debate on the no-confidence motion, Gandhi accused the BJP-led NDA government of destroying the spirit of India in Manipur and asked why the Prime Minister can’t go to Manipur. A visibly upset Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla repeatedly cautioned Gandhi against the use of such expressions. “Bharat is our mother. You are a senior member. You must maintain restraint while speaking in this House,” Birla said.
Later, parts of Gandhi’s speech were expunged.
{{/usCountry}}Later, parts of Gandhi’s speech were expunged.
{{/usCountry}}Gandhi started his speech by talking about how he overcame his knee pain during the Bharat Jodo Yatra, which he led from September 7 last year for 150 days. Narrating how he shed his arrogance during the yatra and started listening to the people, he said, “Lord Hanuman didn’t set Lanka on fire. It was Ravana’s arrogance that set it on fire. Similarly, Lord Ram didn’t kill Ravana, it was the latter’s arrogance that killed him.”
{{/usCountry}}Gandhi started his speech by talking about how he overcame his knee pain during the Bharat Jodo Yatra, which he led from September 7 last year for 150 days. Narrating how he shed his arrogance during the yatra and started listening to the people, he said, “Lord Hanuman didn’t set Lanka on fire. It was Ravana’s arrogance that set it on fire. Similarly, Lord Ram didn’t kill Ravana, it was the latter’s arrogance that killed him.”
{{/usCountry}}Gandhi recalled his experience of the Bharat Jodo Yatra and said he listened to the voice of the people. He tried to draw a parallel with the situation in Manipur and alleged, “If Modi doesn’t listen to the voice of Hindustan, who does he listen to? He listens to only two people. Ravana only listened to two people: Meghnad and Kumbhakaran. Similarly, Modi also listens to only Amit Shah and Adani.”
{{/usCountry}}Gandhi recalled his experience of the Bharat Jodo Yatra and said he listened to the voice of the people. He tried to draw a parallel with the situation in Manipur and alleged, “If Modi doesn’t listen to the voice of Hindustan, who does he listen to? He listens to only two people. Ravana only listened to two people: Meghnad and Kumbhakaran. Similarly, Modi also listens to only Amit Shah and Adani.”
{{/usCountry}}Gandhi said he visited Manipur and met women and children at the relief camps, but the Prime Minister had not done.
“I asked a woman, ‘What happened with you?’ She said, ‘My small son, only child, was shot before my eyes. I spent the whole night with the body of my child and then I felt afraid. I left my house’. I asked her if she had brought along something with her and she said only the clothes she was wearing...,” he said.
Continuing his no-holds-barred attack against the government, Gandhi said it is the Army that can bring peace to Manipur but the government is not deploying it. “You are sprinkling kerosene everywhere. You sprinkled kerosene in Manipur and then added fire to it. You are now trying the same thing in Haryana. You are attempting to burn the country everywhere,” he said, referring to recent communal clashes in Gurugram and Nuh.
Gandhi was out of Parliament for 137 days following his conviction in a criminal defamation case. His membership was restored on Monday. The Congress on Wednesday alleged that though Gandhi spoke for 37 minutes, he was shown for just 14.37 minutes on Sansad TV, which amounted to less than 40% of his total screen time. Making this accusation, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh asked what Prime Minister Modi was afraid of.
“In his first speech after coming back from the unjustified disqualification, Rahul Gandhi spoke from 12.09 pm to 12.46 pm, that is, 37 minutes during the no-confidence motion. Out of the 37 minutes, the Sansad TV camera showed him for only 14 minutes and 37 seconds. That’s less than 40% of screen time. What is Modi afraid of?” Ramesh said.
HT reached out to Sansad TV and the office of the Lok Sabha Speaker but there was no response till the time of going to press.
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