Smriti Irani slams Congress over Rahul's 'murder of India' remark
New Delhi, August 9
Union Minister Smriti Irani on Wednesday came down heavily on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for his “murder of India in Manipur” remark in Lok Sabha, saying this is for the first time in parliamentary democracy that someone has made such a statement.
Irani’s assertion came in response to Rahul Gandhi’s charge that BJP’s politics has divided Manipur into two parts and thus “mother India is being killed”.
Condemning Congress MPs for clapping during Rahul Gandhi’s “Bharat Mata murdered in Manipur” speech in the house, Irani said, “I condemn the aggressive behaviour seen today (referring to Rahul Gandhi’s speech in the House). For the first time in the history of the nation, someone spoke about the murder of ‘Bharat Maa’ and Congress kept on clapping.”
Further taking jibe at the opposition alliance for calling itself INDIA, the Union Minister said, “You are not India, for India is not corrupt. India believes in merit not in dynasty and all these days people like you need to remember what was told to the British – Quit India. Corruption Quit India, Dynasty Quit India.”
Smriti Irani also accused Rahul Gandhi of misogyny. “While leaving Parliament, Rahul Gandhi gave a flying kiss. Only a misogynist man can do that in a house full of women. Is this their family’s culture,” she asked.
Firing back at Rahul Gandhi’s remarks on Manipur, Irani said the government was always ready to debate on the violence in the northeastern state and “it was the opposition that ran away.” She said, “Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh repeatedly said that the government is ready to debate on the Manipur issue. The opposition ran away from it, we did not.”
The Union Minister also invoked 1984 anti-Sikh riots and atrocities on Kashmiri Pandits during Congress’s regimes at Centre. She recounted the horrors of ‘Emergency’ to attack the Congress and said the history of the party’s rule is smeared in blood.
