Parliament monsoon session : Modi criticises 'negative mindset'

Protests by the Opposition members obstructed the Prime Minister from introducing his new  ministers

Narendra Modi: File picture

J.P. Yadav   |   TT  |  New Delhi   |   20.07.21 :  Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said Parliament had never seen such a “negative mindset” as protests by the Opposition members obstructed him from introducing his new  ministers, forgetting that the BJP was the first to do so in 2004 when as the principal Opposition party, it hadn’t allowed then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to fulfil the tradition.

As the monsoon session commenced, the Opposition shouted slogans in protest against price rise, Covid mishandling and the farmers’ issue, and stalled proceedings of both Houses of Parliament.

As the din obstructed Modi from introducing the ministers in both Houses, he accused the Opposition of being “anti-women, anti-Dalit, anti-tribal and anti-OBC”.

Senior minister Rajnath Singh claimed such a thing had never happened in Parliament and accused the Congress of setting an “unhealthy tradition”.

“In my 24 years of parliamentary life, I have never seen a single instance when the Prime Minister was not allowed to introduce his ministers,” Rajnath told the Lok Sabha. “What the Congress did is extremely sad, unfortunate and unhealthy,” he added, as protests by the Opposition members continued.

A little after Modi and Rajnath spoke in the House, Sanjaya Baru, who was media adviser to then Prime Minister Singh, tweeted a picture of a page from his book, Accidental Prime Minister, exposing the lie.

“UPA’s first Parliament session began on a rocky note. From the Prime Minister’s point of view, it was a sad note. For the first time in parliamentary history, a newly elected Prime Minister was neither allowed to introduce his council of ministers to Parliament nor given the privilege of replying to the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President for his address to Parliament,” said the page from Baru’s book on Singh.

The BJP, as principal Opposition in 2004, hadn’t allowed Singh to introduce the ministers of his new government, protesting against the induction of Lalu Prasad and Shibu Soren.

It’s a tradition that the Prime Minister introduces his council of ministers whenever a new government is formed or an expansion takes place.