Sunday, 19 January 2025
Sunday, 19 January 2025
Wayanad, Sambhal, Unnao, Agra on her lips, Congress’s newest MP, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, on Friday reminded fellow parliamentarians and Indian citizens listening to the proceedings on the Lok Sabha that India has never been ruled by cowards for long.
Addressing Speaker Om Birla, Priyanka in her debut speech on the floor of the Lok Sabha narrated a story told down generations of a king who would visit the markets at night in disguise to find out what his people thought and said about him.
“The king of today changes his costumes but is scared of going to the people or facing any criticism,” she said with a wry smile. “Strength and struggle have built this country. The Constitution gives the people strength. Fear has its limits. This country will be run by courage, not fear. Never has this country been ruled by cowards for long. This will country will rise and seek answers.”
Priyanka said she had met the rape victims in Agra and Unnao, the Sambhal violence victims and those who lost everything in the landslide in Wayanad.
“All of them said they would fight. They get the strength from the Constitution of India,” Priyanka said. “When the people of Manipur, Sambhal, Agra seek justice, the prime minister does not even raise his eyebrows. Maybe he hasn’t understood, this is the Constitution of India, not the Sangh’s.”
The two-day debate in the Lok Sabha that started on Friday is to commemorate the 75th anniversary of India adopting the Constitution. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will conclude the debate in the Lok Sabha on Saturday.
Friday belonged to Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who won the Wayanad Lok Sabha bypoll held last month.
“The Treasury bench members keep talking about the past. What Nehru ji did, etc. Talk about the present. Tell the country what you are doing. Is everything Nehru’s responsibility?” she asked.
Priyanka asked the government why it was delaying the implementation of the women’s reservation law.
“You are talking about Nari Shakti because you have understood without women governments cannot be made. Why is the women’s reservation Act not being implemented? Should the women wait for 10 years,” she asked.
“Learn from what happened in 1975 and seek forgiveness. Hold elections on ballot paper. Doodh ka doodh, pani ka pani ho jaayega [Everything will be clear].”
She said the government was forced to speak on the Constitution and raise the caste census issue.
“This discussion is happening because of the Lok Sabha poll results. Had the results been otherwise they would have changed the Constitution. They understood, people of India will not let the Constitution be changed. People today demand caste census. We need to know so that policies can be framed accordingly. What was their discourse? Buffaloes and mangalsutra would be snatched. This is their position on caste census,” she said.
Priyanka accused the BJP of undermining electoral democracy and alleged money was being used to topple elected governments and encourage defections in the Opposition ranks.
“They have a washing machine. Yahaan se wahaan jaata hai dhool jaata hai, iss taraf daag uss taraf swachchhata [Whoever crosses from this side to that gets cleaned. This side is stained, that side is pristine]. What happened in Himachal, Maharashtra, Goa?
Like her elder sibling, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka too raised the issue of Adani.
“For one person everything is being changed,” Priyanka said. “Farm laws are being changed for industrialists. The cold storages in Himachal [where the Congress is in power] were not handed over to Adani by the state government, but by the Centre. All businesses, resources, wealth, assets, opportunities, ports, airports, factories, mines and public sector units are being handed over to only one person. The poor are getting poorer, while the rich are getting wealthier.”
Defence minister Rajnath talked about the events from June 1975 in his speech, without mentioning the word Emergency. Priyanka reminded of the events that have been happening in India over the last 10 years.
“People are stopped from speaking the truth. Everyone has been silenced by ED, CBI, I-T. Opposition leaders are put in jails. In Uttar Pradesh protesting teachers were branded traitors. Their media machine keeps spreading lies, maybe they are also living in fear. This atmosphere of fear was there during the British rule. Those who spread fear themselves live in fear. They are scared of discussions, criticisms. We have been asking for discussion on the floor of the House, but they don’t have the courage to sit [for discussion],” Priyanka said.
