Amid chants of Bharat Jodo and a copy of the Indian Constitution in hand, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was sworn in as a member of the Lok Sabha this afternoon. Mr. Gandhi has been elected from two seats, Wayanad and Rae Bareli. He has vacated the Wayanad seat which will now be contested by his sister and Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
“I, Rahul Gandhi, having been elected a member of the House of Representatives, do solemnly affirm that I will have true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as established by law, that I will uphold the sovereignty of India and I will maintain integrity, and that I will perform this duty with all honesty in which I am Jai Hind, Jai Samudhan,” Mr. Gandhi said while taking the oath.
The constitutional pamphlet has emerged as a familiar sight in the Parliament session as MPs from the Indian opposition bloc carried the leaflets in a demonstration yesterday. Several opposition MPs posted pictures on social media in which they can be seen holding a copy of the constitution. In an interaction with the media, Mr Gandhi said yesterday that the opposition would not allow the government to “attack the constitution”.
To counter the Congress' constitutional narrative, the BJP today launched an all-out attack on the main opposition party. Led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, top ministers of the NDA government took to social media to mark the 50th anniversary of the Emergency imposed by the Indira Gandhi government.
“Today is a day to pay tribute to all the great men and women who resisted the Emergency. #DarkDaysOfEmergency reminds us how the Congress Party has taken away fundamental freedoms and violated the Constitution of India which is highly respected by every Indian”. Posted on X.
“Just to cling to power, the then Congress government ignored every democratic principle and threw the country into jail. Anyone who disagreed with the Congress was tortured and harassed. The weakest sections were targeted. Socially regressive policies were implemented to create
“Emergency people have no right to show their love for our constitution, they are the same people who have imposed Article 356 on countless occasions, brought bills to destroy freedom of press, destroyed federalism and every aspect of the constitution. violated.” He added.
The prime minister said the mentality that led to the imposition of emergency was “very much alive in the party that imposed it”. “They hide their hatred for the Constitution with their sign but the people of India have seen their antics and that is why they have rejected them time and again,” he said.