The Congress on Friday issued a notice in the Rajya Sabha, seeking to discuss Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s allegation that his predecessor Manmohan Singh talked about the Gujarat Assembly elections with Pakistani officials.
The Opposition party submitted a motion under Rule 267, urging the Upper House to suspend matters it had listed for the day and instead discuss the “canards being spread for political gains by leaders holding high offices to tarnish the image of eminent people, who have held Constitutional offices, including that of vice president, prime minister and chief of the Indian Army”.
Rajya Sabha Chairperson Venkaiah Naidu, however, adjourned the post-noon session after the Congress shouted slogans in protest. “These are not ordinary allegations,” Leader of the Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said. With Congress members not relenting, the House was ultimately adjourned for the day at 3.30 pm.
Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on December 11 accused his successor of spreading “falsehoods” to “score political points” by claiming that suspended Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar had held a secret meeting with Pakistani officials. “I reject the innuendos and falsehoods as I did not discuss Gujarat elections with anyone else at the dinner hosted by Mani Shankar Aiyar as alleged by Modi,” Singh had said.
On December 13, in a video statement, Singh said that Modi was “setting a dangerous precedent by his insatiable desire to tarnish every constitutional office”.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, however, rejected Singh’s demand of an apology from Modi, and accused the former prime minister and other Congress leaders of going against India’s national policy by meeting Pakistani delegates.
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