Congress reminds Modi of Constitutional rule on opening day of new Parliament building

On Tuesday, the Congress read out the Preamble to the Constitution, which guarantees justice, liberty, equality, and fraternity, drawing Prime Minister Narendra Modi's attention to the fundamental concerns about constitutional rule just moments before he entered the new Parliament building and spoke of India's aspirations reaching a high not seen in a thousand years.

The priceless words that make up the Constitution's essence resonated in the new Parliament building on its opening day, defining the political climate in which the move from the previous building took place. The main opposition party wished to remind the administration that the change was just geographical in nature because the Constitutional framework had to be adhered to while enforcing the governance doctrine.

Adhir Chowdhury, a Congress leader, read the Preamble shortly after the new Lok Sabha was seated and declared: "Parliament is a national asset, belonging to every citizen, not to any party or a leader."

He argued that "Hindi-tva" shouldn't be imposed on the country like "Hindu-tva" and cautioned against any attempt to artificially separate India and Bharat.

The Prime Minister decided to concentrate on "discipline" and "cooperation" in the new Parliament rather than diving into the fundamentals of democracy, and the Congress leader spoke immediately after him. Bhavna bhi badalni chahiye (The House has changed, even attitudes should change)," Modi had previously stated. He asserted that who would win the 2024 elections will be determined by how the following few months were conducted.
Modi urged the MPs to respect the "Lakshman rekha" of parliamentary decorum and expressed his hope that they would do so. He asked for forgiveness from anyone he might have unintentionally offended and urged the MPs to set an excellent example with their speech and behavior. He urged everyone to support India's extraordinary progress at a time when aspirations were at an all-time high only minutes before entering the new structure during a gathering in the Central Hall of the old Parliament.

Adhir argued that the famous history of Parliament had little to do with architectural splendor even during that program. He wanted to put the emphasis on quick fixes by calling the government's attention to the problems the country was facing. He made mention of India's dismal standing in the global human development index, widening economic gaps, unemployment, high costs for necessities, and the requirement for societal peace.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said the following at the same event, which may have been the last in the old building that is now known as Samvidhan Sabha: "I wish to emphasise at this juncture that this is all due to the collective and dedicated effort by parliamentarians cutting across party lines over the past seven and a half decades. This rich heritage has served as a solid foundation for India's development into a robust democracy.

Kharge continued, "The institutions' success depends on safeguarding constitutional goals and values. A key tenet of governance and development is the notion that institutions are sacred and necessary for success. As the nation advances in efficiently carrying out legislative duties and in our endeavors for the growth of our nation, we should resolve to upholding and maintaining the constitutional ideals and parliamentary traditions.

Kharge's assertion

In front of Modi, Kharge charged the administration with weakening the federal government at the Rajya Sabha in the new edifice.

"You (Modi) mentioned bolstering federalism. Everyone claims that because of your leadership, federalism is losing ground daily. You toppled the Maharashtra and Karnataka governments. Democratically elected governments were destroyed by you. The GST and other centrally supported programs like the MGNREGA are not being distributed by your administration to the states in full. Does it advance federalism? stated Kharge.

Modi said that the Rajya Sabha represents the states earlier.

"We have advanced through cooperative federalism. With the assistance of the states, Covid has been eliminated. Approximately 220 G20 meetings took place in various states. The artworks chosen in this structure reflect the diversity of the states, according to Modi.

Dharmendra Pradhan, the minister of education, and Nirmala Sitharaman, the minister of finance, both disapproved of Kharge's remarks. Sitharaman said that the federal government had promptly paid the states' GST debts. Both Kharge and Sitharaman were requested by Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar to submit supporting documentation for their accusations.

In the background of Kharge's remarks was the fact that Bengal has not received MGNREGA funding from the federal government since December 2021.

Kharge questioned Modi's silence regarding the violence in Manipur. Every day, the prime minister speaks for two to three hours. But he won't talk about Manipur," the Congress leader declared.

Kharge emphasized that the UPA government had introduced a bill in 2010 to reserve 33% of the seats in Parliament and the Assemblies for women.

The constitutional amendment bill that Modi's government submitted in the Lok Sabha to reserve one-third of the seats for women in Parliament and the legislatures was the subject of his address. He described it as a significant step towards women's emancipation.

Basant Kumar Mohanty has more to say.