Government shouted, threatened, made a U-turn, says Congress vice-president
Congress President Sonia Gandhi, former PM Manmohan Singh and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi raising slogans in New Delhi on Tuesday (Photo: PTI)
New Delhi: Taking a swipe at government over its U-turn on land bill, Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said it “ran off” after “threatening” and shouting” in the face of resistance by Congress and vowed that the party will similarly keep up pressure for resignations in Lalit Modi and Vyapam issues.
“On the land issue, Congress stood in front of them. They (government) shouted, made too much noise, threatened and later made a U-turn and ran off,” the Congress vice-president said, a day after BJP members in a parliamentary panel moved amendments to restore provisions of the UPA’s land law.
“Similarly, on the issue of corruption, Vyapam, on the issue of Rajasthan Chief Minister and Sushma Swaraj, we will not minimise the pressure on them even if they throw us out of Parliament or do not let us enter Parliament,” Rahul said.
He made the remarks while agitating with party MPs in House complex in protest against suspension of its 25 members from Lok Sabha. The Congress MPs faced action after they did now allow the house to function demanding the resignation of external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj and Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje for allegedly helping Lalit Modi and MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan over Vyapam scam.
It is no climbdown, says centre:
Rural development minister Birendra Singh denied that there was a climbdown on the Land Bill issue. “There is nothing like climbdown for anything. It is you who are saying we are going back. Even the Constitution, made with the consent of all sections, had to be amended more than 100 times,” he said.
When asked if the government will now come up with a new Bill, the minister said more changes were not required when there was consensus. “The committee has to consider three more clauses. Let us wait for their report,” he said.
Terming the Modi government’s move to drop amendments in the Land Bill as “mockery of parliamentary democracy”, CPM questioned the need for bringing the three ordinances.
RSS affiliate Swadeshi Jagran Manch, which was opposing certain provisions of the new land law, has thanked Modi and BJP President Amit Shah for accepting its concerns on the new legislation. The Manch had been vociferous in its demand for withdrawal of clauses pertaining to consent of farmers and social impact assessment in Bill made by the NDA government.
( Source : deccan chronicle )
Next Story
