Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi attacked the ‘autocratic and dictatorial face of the BJP’ after several of Rahul Gandhi’s remarks were expunged in the Lok Sabha.
New Delhi,UPDATED: Feb 12, 2023 18:58 IST
File photo of Senior lawyer and Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi.
By Supriya Bhardwaj: Senior lawyer and Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi hit out at the BJP government at the Centre after certain remarks made by Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge in Parliament were expunged. Abhishek Manu Singhvi said, “The ruling party’s approach show that this is the most curb, control and command freak sarkar.”
In a statement, the Congress leader said “the autocratic and dictatorial face of the BJP and the ruling dispensation was in full show in each House of Parliament” after several of Rahul Gandhi’s remarks were expunged in the Lok Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge’s remarks were excised in Rajya Sabha, and Rajani Patil was suspended from the Rajya Sabha.
“The BJP government is moving towards establishing an authoritarian dominance in Parliament by terrifying, terrorizing, tormenting, and tyrannizing the Opposition,” Abhishek Manu Singhvi said, adding, “The BJP does not want Parliament to run through consensus, collaboration, and concordance, but through clash, chaos, and conflict.”
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Certain remarks made by Rahul Gandhi in Parliament targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi were expunged. Rahul Gandhi had made these remarks while participating in a debate on the Motion of Thanks on the President’s Address in Lok Sabha on Tuesday.
“Not a word stated therein (in Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge’s speeches) justifies the use of the power of expunction. You can ask for the text if not already with you and see that there is no use of unparliamentary language, no expletive, no debasement of any institution, no objectionable or abusive word or phrase. There is absolutely nothing which is remotely defamatory or indecent or unparliamentary or undignified in those addresses,” the Congress leader claimed.
Adding that the expunction is not justified by any reading of the relevant Rules, like Rule 380 qua the Lok Sabha and similar Rules in the Rajya Sabha, Abhishek Manu Singhvi said, “This government’s and the ruling party’s approach show that this is the most curb, control and command freak sarkar in the history of this nation.”
The Congress leader noted that there have been similar alleged incidents in the past where no action was taken or, at the highest, warnings sufficed.
“The present suspension is disproportionate, excessive and actuated purely by political malice at the behest of this government,” Abhishek Manu Singhvi said.
He added, “Such brazen and unconstitutional approaches, such blatant partisanship, such uncaring decimation of Rules and convention, such destruction of democratic values and such debasement of legislative proceedings deserves the strongest collective condemnation.”
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