Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju criticized Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s remarks on China in Lok Sabha
New Delhi: On Monday, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju criticized Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, for his comments against China and said that he was more critical of the nation than a Chinese spokesman.
In addition, Rijiju demanded that Rahul Gandhi apologize and accept responsibility for the territory that China had stolen from India during the wars of 1959 and 1962, when Jawaharlal Nehru, his grandfather, was prime minister.
The minister further cautioned that in order to preserve the dignity of the Parliament, any unsupported statements made by the LoP should be verified or appropriate action should be taken.
Rijiju emphasized that the Speaker of the Lok Sabha had requested the opposition leader four times to verify his statements during Rahul Gandhi’s address, but the LoP spoke without providing the required evidence and departed the House.
Speaking in the Lok Sabha, Kiren Rijiju said, “The Speaker stated four times that Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition, should verify his statements during his speech today. However, he said and walked away. Since LoP is a serious position, people need to be careful how they express their opinions. If Rahul Gandhi’s comment is taken at its value, then any LoP would come and say what they want and go. If he doesn’t verify what he stated, the chair should take action.
“Today, the LoP praised China more than a Chinese spokesperson,” Rahul Gandhi said in reference to his address. Since his grandpa Jawaharlal Nehru was the prime minister in 1959 and 1962, Rahul Gandhi needs to offer an apology for all the territory that China had stolen.
“This is the Parliament of India and we will not tolerate any insult to India in our Parliament,” he said.
In the Lok Sabha, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey also attacked Rahul Gandhi harshly, claiming that he was planning to split the nation with the help of foreign forces.
During his address, Dubey accused Rahul Gandhi of spreading lies about India’s manufacturing sector and misrepresenting important concerns pertaining to the country’s economic policy.
Citing trade deals inked during the UPA administration run by Congress, he said that they had enriched China while undermining indigenous industry.
“In the beginning, India had only signed ITA 1 with 14 nations—China was not included—during P. Chidambaram’s time as Commerce Minister. Nevertheless, the BJP MP said that the previous administration had signed an agreement that allowed zero percent tariff on all Chinese goods, including toys, electronics, and their accessories, in response to pressure from the EU.
Dubey said that this pact hurt India’s industrial industry and benefited China, accusing the previous administration of “selling out the country” by signing it.
He said that India decided not to join ITA 2 after 2014, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in line with the government’s “Make In India” campaign, which aims to increase local production and lessen reliance on imports from China.
Dubey went on to challenge Rahul Gandhi to show that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had not encouraged rivalry with China in the modern era or backed the expansion of India’s industrial sector.
He insisted that Gandhi either prove his statements or provide an apology to the country for harming the prime minister’s reputation. “If you cannot authenticate your statements, then apologize to the country for the lies you’ve spread and the harm you’ve caused to the nation’s credibility,” Dubey said.
Rahul Gandhi was also charged by Dubey with representing China.
Following Rahul Gandhi’s accusations that the Modi government’s ‘Make In India’ initiative has failed to revive it and that manufacturing’s share of GDP has fallen from 15.3 percent in 2014 to 12.6%, the lowest level in the last 60 years, during Monday’s debate on the motion of thanks to the President’s Address, these comments were made.
Rahul Gandhi has advocated for a caste census, arguing that there would be many opportunities if artificial intelligence (AI) were used to analyze such data.
Gandhi, who went into great length on the need to increase manufacturing, mentioned China’s rivalry and said that India had a chance due to the energy and mobility revolution.
China is at least a decade ahead of India in the fields of batteries, robotics, motors, and optics, he claimed, having been working on these projects for the last 10 years.
“With the correct perspective, we can catch up even if China is ten years ahead. A government from India would restructure education, hire professionals, disseminate funding, and harmonize our foreign and trade policies. Our national security is based on production as well. Our reliance on Chinese goods, such as motors and batteries, puts us in danger in a world where conflicts are waged between industrial systems rather than armies,” he said.
The head of the Congress said, “India has handed its consumption data to the big American companies and the production data we don’t have anyway.”.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said on Monday that “China is sitting inside this country because ‘Make in India’ has failed” and that India has a chance with the energy and mobility revolution, pointing out that wars are fought not just between armies but also by industrial systems.
The Prime Minister has denied that Chinese forces are on our soil, Rahul Gandhi said during the debate on the motion of thanks for the President’s Address. “But for some reason, our army keeps talking to the Chinese about their entry into our territory and the chief of army staff has said that the Chinese are inside our territory.”
BJP members strongly objected to his comments, and Speaker of the Lok Sabha Om Birla urged him to provide evidence for his claims.
Additionally, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju remarked that Rahul Gandhi’s position is not appropriate for “frivolous language” and accused Gandhi of lying.
