New Delhi: The INDIA bloc parties on December 22, 2023, staged a dharna at Jantar Mantar protesting the suspension of 146 MPs and attacked the Narendra Modi government for stifling the voice of the Opposition.

Former Congress President Shri Rahul Gandhi said that by suspending these parliamentarians, the government had shut the voice of 60% Indians. “Every MP carries lakhs of votes. You have not only suspended the MPs but have also silenced crores of people who had voted for the representatives who are now suspended,” Shri Gandhi said. Shri Rahul Gandhi reminded that “A few days ago, two-three youths jumped inside the Parliament House. We all saw them barging in. They came inside, spread some smoke. It is a different matter that all the BJP MPs escaped the scene. Those who call themselves patriots showed no courage. You didn’t see it on TV, we could see it from behind”. Reiterating his earlier claim, the Congress leader Shri Rahul Gandhi blamed the Modi government’s policies for the Parliament security breach. “The government has not given employment to youth. This is why they jumped and entered the Parliament,” he added. Shri Gandhi said that the Opposition under the INDIA bloc would fight the hate the BJP was spreading.

Shri Rahul Gandhi pointed out that “Media says that MPs were sitting outside the Parliament, and Rahul Gandhi shot the video. It’s shocking that they did not say that 150 MPs were thrown out, they were made to stand outside the Parliament. The media did not ask these questions, why it was done, how it was done. A question was asked to Amit Shah that brother, you are the Home Minister, how did these youth come inside by jumping in, only two questions were asked on unemployment and threw150 people out. Media does not talk about unemployment. Instead, it diverts attention”.

He further said that “these 150 people (MPs), they are not just individuals, they are the voice of the people of India. Every MP is backed by lakhs of votes, you have not insulted just 150 MPs, you have silenced 60 percent of the people of India, this is the harsh truth.”

“BJP government cannot take away our right to speak”: Congress President Shri Mallikarjun Kharge Congress President Shri Mallikarjun Kharge hit out at the BJP government during the INDIA bloc protest at Jantar Mantar and said that the centre cannot take away the right to speak given by the Constitution.

“Why was this ‘India’ Alliance formed - ‘India’ Alliance was formed because Modi ji, Shah have taken the initiative to destroy democracy, they have taken the initiative to destroy the Constitution of this country. They have done and are still doing the work of crushing Dalits and laborers, farmers and women,”he said.

Congress President Shri Mallikarjun Kharge said, “Under our Constitution, everyone has the right to speak. When we give notice (in Parliament) we are not even given a chance to read the notice. Should I say that the BJP govt. is not letting a Dalit speak? You cannot take away our ‘Right to Speak’. This freedom was given to us by Jawaharlal Nehru and Mahatma Gandhi. You suspend Opposition MPs and pass laws unopposed. We have to fight together.”

Shri Mallikarjun Kharge said, “One, you are sitting on a Constitutional post and yet you cry. You need to practise the Constitution - under the Constitution, under Democracy, everyone has the right to talk and you cannot snatch that freedom. We have got that freedom from Jawahar Lal Nehru, we have got that freedom from Mahatma Gandhi, we have got that freedom from Dr. Ambedkar who prepared it and gave it to us. Lakhs of people made sacrifices to bring freedom and you people, not even a single rat from your house went to bring freedom, did it? And they blame us that these opposition people are ruining the country, they say that these people do not allow democracy to run here in the country.

“They say the opposition is harming democracy. 146 MPs of the opposition were suspended and all the laws were passed unopposed. The three criminal laws passed will bother the citizens. They did the same for farmers and workers. We have to be united. Whenever there is an election, our Party workers are threatened through the ED, CBI and Income Tax officials. The opposition is not going to be frightened by these raids,” he added.

In this Dharna, several opposition’s senior leaders expressed their views and criticized the suspension of the member of Parliament from Parliament. A total of 146 MPs were suspended across the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha this session, the highest in Indian parliamentary history.