Kicking off the session, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has accused the Congress party for curbing freedom of speech after adopting the Constitution in 1950.
As the winter session of the Parliament continues, the much awaited Constitution debate is underway in the Rajya Sabha. Kicking off the session, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has accused the Congress party for curbing freedom of speech after adopting the Constitution in 1950.
Addressing the upper house, Sitharaman added that the Indian constitution has "stood the test of time".
바카라Today we are extremely proud of the way India바카라s democracy is growing. As the country marks the 75th year of its Constitution, it is time to reaffirm our commitment to build India, that is Bharat, that shall uphold the spirit enshrined in this sacred document,바카라 Sitharaman said.
The BJP leader also paid homage to the 389 members of the Constituent assembly.
Speaking in the Rajya Sabha, Sitharaman criticised the Congress party and the Nehru government for amending the constitution for their own gain.
바카라In the last seven decades, this living document, our Constitution, has seen many amendments,바카라 she said, alleging that the first amendment under Nehru바카라s interim government 바카라curbed the freedom of speech바카라.
"The Supreme Court in 1950 had ruled in favour of the Communist magazine 바카라Cross Roads바카라 and the RSS organisational magazine 바카라Organizer바카라. But in response, the (then) interim government thought that there was a need for a first Constitutional amendment and that was brought in by the Indian National Congress (INC) and it was essentially to curb the freedom. So India, a democratic country which prides itself even today on freedom of expression saw the first interim government coming up with a Constitutional amendment which was to curb the freedom of speech of Indians and that within one year of adoption of the Constitution," the finance minister added.
Reacting to Sitharaman's statements during the Constitution debate, Congress president Malikarjun Kharge has criticised the Union Finance minister for "defaming" Nehru and Indira Gandhi.
"Those people who hate the national flag, those who hate our 'Ashok Chakra', those who hate the Constitution... such people are trying to teach us. When the Constitution was made, these people burned it. They torched effigies of Babasaheb Ambedkar, Jawaharlal Nehru, Mahatma Gandhi at Ramleela Maidan (in Delhi) the day the Constitution was adopted," said Kharge.
The Congress president also called PM Modi the "number one liar."
"It was said that Rs 15 lakh would come but nothing came... these people are misleading the country and deceiving the people by lying. The Prime Minister should have told what he has done in the last 11 years to strengthen the Constitution," he added.