Main opposition BJP today attacked the government's proposed move for disinvestment in public sector undertakings and said the UPA was planning to do so because these units "are not being run efficiently" by it.
Participating in the debate on the Motion of Thanks on the President's Address in Rajya Sabha, BJP's Rajiv Pratap Rudy said while NDA government had done a lot to strengthen state units, the UPA was thinking of introducing disinvestment as the PSUs were not being run efficiently in its tenure.
Rudy said the government should acknowledge the good work being done by NDA-led state governments in several sectors.
On a lighter note, while referring to the Women's Reservation Bill, Rudy assured the House that NDA partners "will not do a Socrates" on it. JD-U chief Sharad Yadav had said he will consume poison if the bill was forcibly passed, as did Greek philosopher Socrates when faced with the option of disowning what he believed in.
However, when Rudy chose to comment on the Election Commission and sought to ask the House as to why there is no code of conduct for it, Chairman Hamid Ansari warned him not to comment on a Constitutional body.
Participating in the debate, BJD's Pyarimohan Mohapatra accused the UPA government of being partisan towards non-Congress states. "This discrimination was there earlier and will continue in future also," he alleged.
Mohapatra was critical of the Centre for asking states like Orissa and Bihar to return the funds given to them to deal with natural calamities. He also blamed the Centre for accepting the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission without consulting the state governments.
Congress member Ashwani Kumar hailed the President's Address as a charter of the new UPA government and said that it contained several new points like the national food mission and the Food Security Act.
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Prabha Thakur (Cong) also participated in the debate.
Gyan Prakash Pilania (BJP) expressed concern over growing incidents of racial attacks on Indians in Australia.
He was also anguished over suicides by farmers and lack of safety for women in the national capital.
Pilania said Bangladeshi infiltrators were a "curse" for India and posed danger to national security.
Shivanand Tiwari (JD-U) accused the Centre of discriminating against Bihar as no money was given to the state despite its demand for Rs 14,808 crore in flood relief.
Kapila Vatsayayan (Nominated) referred to climate change and voiced concern over ecological balance getting disturbed.
Arjun Kumar Sengupta (Independent) said giving Rs 6000 crore loan waiver to farmers would not solve their plight and demanded new agricultural techniques for small and marginal farmers.
Sengupta was also worried over jobless growth and demanded a better deal to workers in the unorganised sector.
T Subbarami Reddy (Cong) welcomed the Centre's plans to provide 25 kg of rice or wheat to BPL families every month at Rs 3 a kilo, and its stand of zero tolerance towards terror.
He too was concerned over racial attacks in Australia.
Tarlochan Singh (Independent), while favouring reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state assemblies, said the bill in this regard should be more practical and there should be quota within quota for dalit women.
On the 25th anniversary of Operation Blue Star, he demanded withdrawal of gallantry awards to army officers who had stormed the Golden Temple. Sharad Joshi (Swatantra Bharat Paksh) was disturbed over terrorism and growing job loss because of global meltdown.
B S Gnanadesikan (Cong) was agitated over the racial attacks in Australia. He demanded facilities for Sri Lankan refugees in Tamil Nadu to return to their homes.