New Delhi : Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of insulting Parliament and the electorate by not coming to the House to speak on the police action against students protesting over the NEET paper leak issue. He said the opposition would continue its protest in both Houses until the prime minister addressed the matter on the floor of Parliament.
Kharge said the government must answer questions on the action taken against students and apologise for the use of force. He also said the opposition was ready for a discussion, but its notices had been rejected, and alleged that the prime minister was trying to divert attention from the main issue.
Speaking to reporters outside Parliament, the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha said, “Either he (Modi) is afraid of facing the House and the MPs, or he does not have any regard for Parliament. Any one of the two is possible.” He said the prime minister was not only insulting Parliament, but also “the people who have elected the Parliamentarians”.
In a post in Hindi on X, Kharge alleged that “Modi ji should apologise for lathi-charging and firing pellet guns at the youth… but instead of coming to Parliament, he is intimidating and threatening the children”.
He also said, “They do not come to the House, they do not answer questions, they do not speak on the theft of donations at Ram temple, nor do they say anything on the suppression of students. Innocent children are not traitors; do not label them as such. The real traitors are the BJP people!… who are crushing democracy.”
Kharge said that when the prime minister could wake up at midnight and make his point on Instagram, “he should say the same thing in Parliament. He should instead call a press conference and answer the questions”. He added, “This is an insult to Parliament, to the people who have elected Parliamentarians as well as to democracy. In a democracy, debates take place, and the government responds to the debate, but the prime minister is not even entering the House.”
He said the prime minister was speaking about forgiving children, but “he should apologise to the children instead as it is his government which used tear gas, lathis and pellet guns against protesting children. He should have apologised for all that”. Kharge said the fact that the prime minister was not coming to Parliament and speaking was an insult to the institution, and that people wanted to hear him out.
Kharge said PM Modi should sit in the House and listen to members. “We are ready for a discussion. All our notices have been rejected. We will continue to agitate to bring the truth out,” he said. Opposition leaders also said they would raise the issue of alleged donation theft at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, saying it involved “people’s money” that had been embezzled.
He also objected to protesting students being described as “anti-national”. Referring to the Anna Hazare-led Jan Lokpal agitation, Kharge alleged there had been attempts to bring down the Congress-led UPA government through “funding” and asked, “What was it,” while alleging that “it is the BJP people who are anti-national as they are crushing democracy”.
The Congress has accused the government of using force against students protesting over problems in the education and examination system and has demanded accountability for the police action. The party has also sought a statement in Parliament from Home Minister Amit Shah on the students’ stir.
AICC general secretary K C Venugopal also questioned the home minister’s absence. “Why is the Home Minister not coming to Parliament?” he said. Venugopal added that Amit Shah had been very active during previous sessions, but was not attending this one. “The atrocities and attacks against students are still continuing. We, and the entire country, need an answer from the Home Minister,” he said.
Kharge’s remarks came as the opposition kept up its protest in both Houses, saying the government must respond in Parliament on the action against students, while also raising questions on other issues, including the Ram temple donation matter and the labelling of student protesters.
