The Congress had always stood for internal discussions and there were no two groups within the party as all were fighting under Sonia Gandhi’s leadership to defeat the BJP in the coming Assembly elections, senior leader Anand Sharma said on Wednesday.
Mr. Sharma, a key member of the group of 23 dissenters (G-23) who had written a letter to Ms. Gandhi last August to push for a revamp of the organisation, was responding to a question on an allegation of groupism by senior leader from Kerala P.C. Chacko who, earlier in the day, announced his resignation from the party.
The Congress’s Deputy Leader in the Rajya Sabha was part of a joint press conference at party headquarters along with Leader of the Opposition in the House Mallikarjun Kharge, and other party MPs, including Deepender Hooda, Akhilesh Prasad Singh and Syed Nasir Hussain.
Stalemate in Parliament
The Congress leaders were addressing the media about the stalemate in Parliament over fuel price rise, inflation and farmers’ protests for the last three days.
While the Congress-led Opposition has been demanding an immediate discussion on these issues, the government is keen to first pass its legislative business.
Mr. Kharge said, “Petrol and diesel have never been this expensive in India’s history. The price of kerosene that used to be sold under the public distribution system is now touching the skies”.
The government had collected ₹ 21 lakh crore in excise duty in the past six years and the Opposition wanted to know which welfare schemes the government spent this amount on, he stated.
Mr. Sharma charged the government with “monumental mismanagement” of the economy, negating parliamentary tradition by denying the Opposition an opportunity to raise questions.
“Convening of Parliament is not meant only for transaction of government business...The Opposition must be given its space and voice,” he said, adding that the government was “striking at the very roots of democracy”.
Mr. Hooda alleged that the government was insensitive to farmers’ issues and claimed that rarely had there been any agitation that had claimed nearly 300 lives over 100 days and yet an elected government remained unmoved.
“Lakhs of people are still looking towards us, believing in the parliamentary system. Last night, also their tents were uprooted in a storm, their cooking places destroyed. Elderly women getting affected. Are we supposed to be mute spectators?” he said.
