Winter Session: Union Minister Kiren Rijiju on Monday sought an apology from Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi for their party workers’ alleged threat to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s life.
As ruckus erupted, proceedings of both the houses were adjourned.
When the House met at 11 AM after the weekend break, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla first paid tributes to three former members of the House who passed away in the recent past. As soon as the obituary references were over, the members of the treasury benches were on their feet protesting against the alleged threat to the prime minister given at a rally of the Congress held on Sunday.
“Congress workers have threatened to dig the grave of the prime minister at the Congress rally. This is the most unfortunate incident to happen. PM Modi is the leader of the 140 crore people of the country and the most strong leader of the world. Congress party must tender an apology for the threat,” Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said.
The minister said the leaders and workers of different parties are opponents, not enemies and in 2014 when an MP made certain remarks against the opposition, the prime minister had directed him to tender an apology and accordingly he did that. “Congress should now tender an apology for giving threat to the prime minister,” Rijiju said. As the uproar continued, the Speaker adjourned the House till 12 noon within minutes of the proceedings.
The proceedings of the Rajya Sabha were also adjourned till 12 noon amid uproar from Treasury benches over slogans raised against PM Modi. Immediately after papers were laid in the Upper House, Leader of the House and Union Minister J P Nadda condemned the Congress for the slogans, saying they reflected the party’s thinking. “With pain and an agitated heart, I want to share before the House that yesterday in the Congress party rally, slogans were shouted ‘Modi teri kabr khudegi, aaj nahi to kal khudegi’ (Modi’s grave will be dug.. if not today, then tomorrow). This type of slogan reflects the Congress party’s thinking and mindset,” Nadda said.
During a press conference earlier in the day, Rijiju had alleged that at Sunday’s Congress rally in the national capital, some party workers had threatened to dig the grave of the Prime Minister, which was the “most unfortunate and tragic” thing to happen in Indian democracy.