“His Words Not Taken Off Record”: Rahul Gandhi On PM’s Nehru Remark

New Delhi:

Congress’s Rahul Gandhi today questioned why Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks on the use of the Nehru surname were not taken off the record, when his comments, made in “polite” language and backed with evidence, were struck off. “I used the most polite language and everything I said was based on proof… the Prime Minister directly insults me. He says why is your name Gandhi and not Nehru. But his words are not taken off the record,” he told a meeting at his constituency in Kerala’s Wayanand.

But it “does not matter as the truth always comes out,” Mr Gandhi said.

“All you have to do was to look at my face when I was speaking and his face. Look how many times the PM drank water and how his hands were shaking while drinking water… PM thinks he is very powerful and people will get scared of him. PM doesn’t realise the absolute last thing I’m scared of is Narendra Modi. It doesn’t matter if he is the PM of India. Because one day he will be forced to face his truth,” Mr Gandhi added

Mr Gandhi’s comments accusing PM Modi of crony capitalism in connection to Gautam Adani have unleashed a political storm inside parliament and out. While the BJP has been on the warpath since, the Congress has dug in its heels, insisting that expunging Mr Gandhi’s remarks was an attack on democracy.

A chunk of Mr Gandhi’s comments in parliament, linking PM Modi to the meteoric rise of the billionaire since 2014, was struck off the records after the BJP alleged that it was “unparliamentary” and “misleading”.

A notice for breach of privilege was filed in which BJP MP Nihikant Dubey alleged that his remarks were “misleading, derogatory, indecent, unparliamentary, undignified and incriminatory in nature”.

The Prime Minister had hit back a few days later, while replying to a debate on the President’s speech in Rajya Sabha.

Without naming Mr Gandhi or the Congress, he said, “If we miss out on mentioning Nehru anywhere, they (Congress) get upset. Nehru was such a great person, then why does none of them use the Nehru surname. What is the shame in using the Nehru name”.

“According to the rules, parts of a speech can be removed from the record if you are saying something without support or if you are insulting anyone. I did not insult anybody. I used the kindest language. I used the most polite language and everything I said was based on proof,” Mr Gandhi said today.

Declaring that he has written to the Lok Sabha Speaker submitting proof to back his allegations, he expressed doubts that it would help restore the expunged parts of his speech.

Mr Gandhi’s allegations against PM Modi came amid spotlight on Mr Adani’s companies after US-based short-seller Hindenburg Research alleged stock manipulation and accounting fraud by the group. The controversy has led to massive disruptions in both houses of parliament during the budget session.

The Adani Group has called the Hindenburg report a “malicious combination of selective misinformation and stale, baseless and discredited allegations that have been tested and rejected by India’s highest courts”.

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