The Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) held its General Body meeting on Thursday at the Central Hall of Parliament in New Delhi, chaired by CPP chairperson Sonia Gandhi. During the meeting, she praised party members for effectively highlighting key issues during the Budget session and launched a scathing attack on the BJP-led Union Government over several contentious matters, including the Waqf Amendment Bill and the One Nation, One Election proposal.
Sonia Gandhi expressed concern over the lack of discussions on critical subjects such as national security, foreign policy, and electoral transparency. She alleged that the ruling party deliberately prevented the opposition from debating important topics, including the functioning of the Defence and External Affairs ministries and the issue of Chinese incursions.
“We had demanded a debate on issues of public importance. However, the ruling party denied them. We wanted a detailed discussion in the Lok Sabha on the working of the Defence and External Affairs ministries, given the turbulent political atmosphere in our neighborhood, but this was disallowed,” she said.
Gandhi also criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement on June 19, 2020, regarding the India-China border situation, calling it a “shocking clean chit” that weakened India’s negotiating position. She further accused the government of allowing unchecked imports from China, which she claimed were harming Indian MSMEs.
The Congress leader reiterated her party’s long-standing claim that opposition voices were being stifled in Parliament. She pointed out that both the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were consistently denied the opportunity to speak.
“It is a matter of grave concern that the LoP in the Lok Sabha is not permitted to speak. Similarly, time and again, the LoP in the Rajya Sabha, Khargeji, is also not allowed to say what he wants to say and indeed must say,” she remarked.
She also accused the BJP of using Parliament as a political platform while suppressing discussions on electoral reforms, particularly regarding the Election Commission’s functioning.
Sonia Gandhi strongly opposed the recently passed Waqf Amendment Bill, calling it a “brazen assault on the Constitution” and a tool for “permanent polarization” by the BJP.
“The Bill was bulldozed through. It is very much part of the BJP’s deliberate strategy to keep our society in a state of permanent polarization,” she said.
Calling the One Nation, One Election Bill a “subversion of the Constitution,” Gandhi reaffirmed Congress’ strong opposition to the proposed legislation. She also criticized the government for delaying the implementation of the Women’s Reservation Bill and failing to address demands for one-third reservation for women from SC, ST, and OBC communities.
Sonia Gandhi urged Congress MPs to aggressively counter BJP narratives, particularly regarding governance in Congress-ruled states. She accused BJP members of spreading “falsehoods” about Congress-led state governments and called on party leaders to expose “failures and misgovernance” in BJP-ruled states with “pointed homework and research.”
Concluding her address, Sonia Gandhi accused the Modi government of dragging the country toward an “abyss” where the Constitution would exist only on paper. She urged party members to continue their fight against what she described as the BJP’s attempts to turn India into a “surveillance state” and to expose the government’s failures through public outreach campaigns.
As the Congress gears up for the upcoming political battles, Gandhi’s address signaled a more aggressive stance against the BJP, setting the stage for heated confrontations in Parliament and beyond.