New Delhi: Moments after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was disqualified as a Member of the Parliament following his conviction, several political party leaders cutting across party lines, have rallied behind him.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said Opposition leaders have become the prime target of the BJP in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “new India”.
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“In PM Modi’s New India, Opposition leaders have become the prime target of BJP! While BJP leaders with criminal antecedents are inducted into the cabinet, Opposition leaders are disqualified for their speeches. Today, we have witnessed a new low for our constitutional democracy,” said Banerjee.
“In PM Modi’s New India, Opposition leaders have become the prime target of BJP! While BJP leaders with criminal antecedents are inducted into the cabinet, Opposition leaders are disqualified for their speeches. Today, we have witnessed a new low for our constitutional democracy,” said the TMC chief.
Arvind Kejriwal tore into the Central leadership over the court’s order on Rahul Gandhi and Lok Sabha’s swift move after it.
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“They want to create such an environment that there is only one party and only one leader left in the country. They want all the other leaders and parties to be finished. This is called dictatorship,” he said.
“But today’s government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is more dangerous than the British rule. This is not just a Congress fight. This is a fight to save the country,” said the Delhi Chief Minster.
AAP leader and a minister in Kejriwal’s cabinet Saurabh Bhardwaj questioned if the Opposition’s voice is suppressed, “who will raises the people’s issues?”
Uddhav Thackeray, who heads the Shiv Sena (UBT) party, on Friday, dubbed Gandhi’s disqualification as “murder” of democracy and said this is the beginning of the end of “dictatorship”.
“This is the murder of democracy. All agencies are under pressure. This is the beginning of the end of the dictatorship…the battle only needs a direction (now),” Thackeray said.
Lalu Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal’s Manoj Jha called the disqualification “shameful and unfortunate”. “Nothing can be a bigger blot in the history of parliamentary democracy,” the MP said.
CPI leader Binoy Viswam asked where India was going as a democracy. “Where is our democracy heading to? For a speech made in Kolar, case in Surat, that too after how many years? Anybody of their dislike can be booked for whatever reason they decide! Today it is Rahul Gandhi, tomorrow it can be you or me. Time to unite in defence of democracy,” he said.
The Lok Sabha Secretariat disqualified Rahul Gandhi as MP from Wayanad in Kerala a day after a court in Surat convicted him in a defamation case and sentenced him to two years in jail.
Gandhi would not be able to contest elections for eight years unless a higher court stays his conviction and sentence.
The Congress party came down heavily on the ruling BJP and its president Mallikarjun Kharge said, “They don’t want to keep those who are speaking the truth but we will continue to speak the truth.”
“If needed we’ll go to jail to save democracy,” he added.
Senior leader Shashi Tharoor expressed shock over the prompt action within a day of his conviction and called it “politics with gloves off”.
“I’m stunned by this action and by its rapidity, within 24 hours of the court verdict and while an appeal was known to be in process. This is politics with the gloves off and it bodes ill for our democracy,” said MP Tharoor.