NEW DELHI: The Congress on Friday took strong exception to how Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla chastised former Congress president Sonia Gandhi over her comment that the Waqf (Amendment) Bill was “bulldozed through” the Lower House.
While addressing party MPs at a meeting of the Congress Parliamentary Party in Samvidhan Sadan here on Thursday, Gandhi had said, “Yesterday, the Waqf (Amendment) Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha. And today it is scheduled to come up in the Rajya Sabha.
The Bill was, in effect, bulldozed through.” She had added, “Our party’s position is clear. The Bill is a brazen assault on the Constitution itself. It is very much part of the BJP’s deliberate strategy to keep our society in a state of permanent polarisation.”
Birla took a stern view of her remarks after Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju raised the issue and asked the Speaker to render a ruling on it. Without mentioning the Rajya Sabha by name, Birla expressed that a senior member casting aspersions on the House proceedings was “most unfortunate” as well as against the dignity of parliamentary democracy.
Birla pointed out that the Lower House had a debate for 13 hours and 53 minutes on the matter in which several members of various parties participated.
It was passed as per the rules of the House, he asserted, adding, “It is highly unfortunate that despite the House sitting till late night and passing the Bill after a long debate, a senior member is casting aspersions on the House proceedings. It is not appropriate.” He further expressed, “It is not in accordance with the dignity of parliamentary democracy.”
Congress Deputy Leader in Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi hit back, saying, “It seems the House is slowly turning into Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s darbar.” Addressing the media, Gogoi said the party’s top leadership would be consulted on what appropriate steps were to be taken over the issue.
“This follows a series of events in which parliamentary rules were flouted. We had hoped to see a change after a meeting of the Opposition with the Speaker on how the government was turning Parliament into a darbar. But we are disappointed,” Gogoi rued.