Naidu, Sonia clash over anti-Modi jibes

Aditi Tandon

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 27

Blame game and political point scoring continued to mark the debate on “Commitment to Constitution” in the Lok Sabha for the second day today with the government and opposition leaders resorting to taunts and swipes to guard their political turfs.

Highlight of the day was Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s vociferous retort to Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu’s objections over Congress leaders Mani Shankar Aiyar and Salman Khurshid’s anti-Prime Minister remarks in Pakistan.

“We expected Sonia to condemn the remarks of her colleagues but sadly that didn’t happen,” Naidu said provoking Sonia to ask: “Have you stooped your leaders?” Sonia’s reference was to polarising statements by some BJP leaders, including the Assam Governor, who recently said India was for Hindus.

On Aiyar’s comments to Pakistan TV channel that PM Modi should be dislodged from power for Indo-Pak peace process to resume, the Congress reacted with disowning their leader.

“The person in question (read Aiyar) is not an AICC member. He is only a nominated Rajya Sabha MP. How can you ask our leader to condemn his statement?” Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge asked Naidu who rushed to answer back with yet another jibe, this time on Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, who a day before encountered some dissenting college students in Bengaluru.

Citing Dr BR Ambedkar’s exit from the Jawaharlal Nehru cabinet on account of the former’s ideological obligations, the minister said, “Dr Ambedkar left the Nehru cabinet to pursue the path of his ideals. He was not afraid to speak his mind. Just as the students of modern times who are very wise. Yesterday when Rahul Gandhi went to Bengaluru, students openly dissented with him.”