Nineteen Opposition parties have announced that they will boycott the inauguration of the new Parliament building by PM Modi, terming it an insult to the office of the President.

news Politics Wednesday, May 24, 2023 - 13:23
Written by  TNM Staff

Accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government of insulting the office of the President and violating the spirit of the Constitution of India, 19 opposition parties including the Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Trinamool Congress (TMC), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), and others have announced that they will boycott the inauguration of the new Parliament House building by PM Modi on May 28. A joint statement issued by several key opposition parties said that PM Modi's decision to inaugurate the new Parliament building by himself, while sidelining President Droupadi Murmu, was not only a grave insult but a direct assault on Indian democracy.

The new Parliament House inauguration event is scheduled to be held on May 28, on the occasion of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) ideologue VD Savarkar’s birth anniversary. PM Modi will be inaugurating the new Parliament building — a triangular-shaped four-storeyed structure with a built-up area of 64,500 square metres. The announcement was first made by the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) IT cell in-charge Amit Malviya on May 19. 

He said, “Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will inaugurate the new Parliament building on 28th May 2023, which is also the 140th birth anniversary of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, the great son of India. Veer Savarkar was born on 28th May 1883 in Bhagur. The new Parliament is designed to last at least 150 years. The current premise has been in existence for 100 years now.”

Earlier, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge had also said that President Droupadi Murmu should inaugurate the new Parliament House instead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Announcing the boycott of the historic event, the Opposition parties said, “When the soul of democracy has been sucked out from the Parliament, we find no value in a new building. We announce our collective decision to boycott the inauguration of the new Parliament building. We will continue to fight — in letter, in spirit and in substance against the authoritarian Prime Minister and his government, and take our message directly to the people of India.”

The Opposition parties also listed out other reasons for the boycott, including “undemocratic acts” by the PM such as disqualification and suspension of opposition Members of Parliament, terming it as the PM’s relentless attempt to “hollow out the Parliament.” “Many controversial legislations, including the three farm laws, have been passed with almost no debate, and Parliamentary Committees have been practically made defunct,” the statement read.

“The President is not only the Head of State in India, but also an integral part of the Parliament. She summons, prorogues, and addresses the Parliament. She must assent for an Act of Parliament to take effect. In short, the Parliament cannot function without the President. Yet, the Prime Minister has decided to inaugurate the new Parliament building without her. This undignified act insults the high office of the President, and violates the letter and spirit of the Constitution. It undermines the spirit of inclusion which saw the nation celebrate its first woman Adivasi President,” the statement added. 

“The new Parliament building has been built at great expense during a once-in-a-century pandemic with no consultation with the people of India or MPs, for whom it is apparently being built. When the soul of democracy has been sucked out from the Parliament, we find no value in a new building. We announce our collective decision to boycott the inauguration of the new Parliament building. We will continue to fight — in letter, in spirit, and in substance — against this authoritarian Prime Minister and his government, and take our message directly to the people of India,” they said.

The signatories to the joint statement are Indian National Congress, Davida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Trinamool Congress (TMC), Aam Adami Party (AAP), Shiv Sena, Samajwadi Party, Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)], Janata Dal (United), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Rashtriya Janata Dal, Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), National Conference, Revolutionary Socialist Party, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, Kerala Congress, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), and Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK). 

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