Congress protests PM’s Manmohan tirade with ‘mock session’ in LS

NEW DELHI: A meeting between the government and the opposition on Tuesday failed to break the deadlock over PM Narendra Modi's "conspiracy with Pakistan" remark against his predecessor Manmohan Singh during the Gujarat poll campaign as Congress stuck to its stand seeking an apology from Modi for his comments.
"Let us see what the government decides in its wisdom. I think the PM's stature will not be diminished if he clarifies and regrets because Manmohan Singh is also a member of the House. Why should he stand on falsehood? Either he should prove there was something wrong or he should take his words back to convey his regret to Singh," deputy leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha Anand Sharma said after the meeting.

The Congress member said the opposition parties will collectively take a call after the government gets back with its decision.


The half-hour meeting in the chamber of leader of RS Arun Jaitley was attended by Congress members Ghulam Nabi Azad and Sharma, besides opposition faces Ram Gopal Yadav, Satish Misra, D Raja and others.

Congress members earlier raised the issue in both Houses of Parliament and disrupted proceedings. They even conducted 'mock proceedings' from the Lok Sabha well, demanding an apology from the PM for his remark against Singh.

With Congress chief Rahul Gandhi and former party president Sonia Gandhi looking on from their seats, party members held 'mock proceedings' where members one by one addressed the chair from the well of the House while normal proceedings were going on.

Speaker Sumitra Mahajan's warning of naming them for disciplinary action did not stop them from raising slogans like 'Pradhan Mantri maafi mango' (Apologise, PM!). Mahajan was heard telling the protesting Congress members that whatever happened in a poll campaign should not be used to disrupt proceedings.

Parliamentary affairs minister Ananth Kumar slammed the opposition party, saying the Congress's conduct was "shameful and condemnable". "They entered the well, which is itself condemnable. They then tried to conduct mock proceedings. One senior Congress leader after another kept speaking defying the chair. The entire House condemns it," Kumar said.

The matter also created ripples in Rajya Sabha. Leader of the opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad alleged that Singh's (former PM) integrity and loyalty to the country had been questioned by none other than the prime minister and demanded that Modi should come to the House to offer a clarification.