Nehru, Indira, Rajiv, Sonia: PM Modi’s big ‘Constitution’ attack on Gandhis
Prime Minister Narendra Modi mounted a scathing attack on the Gandhi family across its generations, accusing it of leaving no stone unturned in attacking the Constitution.
Participating in the debate on the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution, PM Modi said the seeds of changing the Constitution were sown by Jawaharlal Nehru, and it was followed up by Indira Gandhi.
“The legacy that began with former Prime Minister Pandit JL Nehru was carried forward by Indira Gandhi, and when Rajiv Gandhi became the prime minister, he continued to attack the Constitution,” PM Modi said. He also took potshots at Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, while claiming that the Constitution was altered 75 times in 60 years during Congress’s tenure.
PM MODI ON JAWAHARLAL NEHRU
Training his guns on Nehru, PM Modi said the former Prime Minister followed his own Constitution and did not heed the advice of senior leaders like Jayprakash Narayan and the then President Dr Rajendra Prasad. He also asserted that Congress did not follow its own Constitution, and made Nehru the leader when state units had supported Sardar Patel.
“In 1951, Pandit Nehru wrote a letter to chief ministers. He wrote that if the Constitution came in the way, we must make changes in the Constitution at any cost. The then President Dr Rajendra Prasad alerted him that it is wrong. The then Speaker also told him… But Pandit Nehru had his own Constitution,” PM Modi said.
PM MODI ON INDIRA GANDHI
PM Modi said the practice of changing the Constitution was followed up by Indira Gandhi during her tenure. Accusing Indira Gandhi of imposing the Emergency by misusing the Constitution, he asserted that the former PM clipped the wings of courts through Constitutional amendments to capture the judiciary.”The Constitution was torn apart when it was completing 25 years. The Emergency was imposed in 1975, all constitutional rights were snatched, and the country was turned into a jail. All the rights of the citizens were snatched and there was a clampdown on the media,” the Prime Minister said.
PM Modi also referred to the 1971 incident when Indira Gandhi was disqualified by the Allahabad High Court after finding her guilty of corrupt electoral practices. The decision, which was reversed by the Supreme Court, went on to be the trigger to declare the Emergency.
“In 1971, a court decision was overturned by amending the Constitution that same year. They clipped the wings of our country’s judiciary,” PM Modi said.
PM MODI ON RAJIV GANDHI
Turning to Rajiv Gandhi, PM Modi said the former Prime Minister attacked the Constitution by overturning the Supreme Court verdict in the Shah Bano case. The Prime Minister alleged that Rajiv Gandhi “sided with extremists” for “vote bank politics”.
In 1985, the Supreme Court allowed a petition by Shah Bano seeking alimony from her husband after being divorced. However, the then Congress government passed a law to overrule the verdict following protests from Muslim groups.
PM MODI ON SONIA GANDHI AND RAHUL
Turning his attention to Sonia Gandhi, PM Modi said the National Advisory Council, which was headed by the former Congress chief, was put “above” the Cabinet during the UPA rule under Manmohan Singh.
“The Congress placed a non-Constitutional body, the National Advisory Council, over and above the prime minister,” PM Modi said.
Without naming Rahul Gandhi, the Prime Minister said an “arrogant” leader “tore” the decision of the Cabinet when the Manmohan Singh government was in power to further buttress his point on how the Congress attacked the Constitution.
In 2013, an ordinance was brought by the UPA government to shield convicted lawmakers from immediate disqualification. However, Gandhi opposed the ordinance of his own party and tore it at a press conference as a mark of protest.