As Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday asked the Congress to make a New Year resolution to allow parliament to function, the opposition party hit back by asking him to "introspect" instead on the issue.
"The prime minister should introspect the reason on account of which parliament is not functioning. Should he not examine the reasons instead of creating a false smoke screen? Has he forgotten the attitude of the Bharatiya Janata Party between 2004 and 2014 in not allowing parliament to function?" Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala told media persons here.
Modi asked the Congress to adopt a resolution to allow parliament to function for the sake of the nation's development, adding that the party that ruled for six decades did not have the right to destroy its functioning for political reasons.
"If the opposition has no right to speak, will Modi-ji tell the people of India as to under what right parliament (functioning) was blocked by the BJP during the 10-year rule of the United Progressive Alliance government?
"We believe the responsibility of running parliament is of the government and of championing the people's issues is that of the opposition. The prime minister has given a complete go-by to constitutional norms, parliamentary values and democratic ideas," he added.
Surjewala said: "Modi-ji only believes in his own branding, giving a complete go-by to the welfare of the poor. We urge Modi-ji and the BJP to take action against their own corrupt leaders.
"He should remove Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan, Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje, Chhattisgarh CM Raman Singh, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and other tainted ministers and by all means let parliament function," the Congress leader said.
