PM mounts fresh attack on Cong over Emergency

Speaking in Rajya Sabha, Modi counters saviour of Constitution narrative of Opposition

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi Wednesday took the Congress to the cleaners over making the 2024 general elections about the protection of the Constitution, saying Indians voted on the plank only once when they threw out the Indira Gandhi government in 1977 after the Emergency.

Speaking in Rajya Sabha, he gave an account of the situation in strife-torn Manipur, promised action in the NEET paper leak case, and listed out achievements of his past two terms and priorities for the third.

A day after his spirited response to the debate in Lok Sabha on a motion to thank President Droupadi Murmu for her address to the joint sitting of Parliament, Modi launched an all-out attack on the Congress, saying it speaks with a forked tongue, opposing celebration of the Constitution Day while doing the “drama” of protecting the Constitution during polls.

This infuriated I.N.D.I.A bloc parties, who shouted slogans and calling Modi a “liar”. Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge wanted to intervene but was not allowed, leading to the Opposition MPs trying to drown out Modi’s speech by raising slogans. Later they staged a walkout.

Undeterred, Modi continued his speech and said the Congress was running away as it does not have the courage to hear the truth. Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar also condemned the walkout, calling it an insult to the Constitution.

In his nearly two-hour speech, Modi listed out his previous government’s achievements: from raising MSP for crops to giving the poor access to the banking system and loans, and fuelling India’s rise to become the fifth largest economy.