The first sitting of the five-day Special Session saw Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs from across parties get candid and sentimental in their remarks, as they bid adieu to the old Parliament building.
(Photo: PTI)
The Special Session of Parliament kicked off on Monday, 18 September, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi recalling the contributions of his predecessors such as Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Jawaharlal Nehru.
The first sitting of the five-day Special Session saw Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs from across parties get candid and sentimental in their remarks, as they bid adieu to the old Parliament building.
From Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge to AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, here's what MPs said while participating in a special discussion on 'Parliamentary Journey of 75 Years Starting from Samvidhan Sabha – Achievements, Experiences, Memories and Learnings.'
Addressing the Rajya Sabha on the first day of the Parliament Session, Mallikarjun Kharge said: "Nehru ji believed that the absence of a strong Opposition means that there are significant drawbacks in the system. If there is no strong Opposition, it is not right. Now that there is a strong Opposition, focus is on weakening it through ED and CBI."
"You can see what is happening today. PM comes to the Parliament rarely and when he does he leaves after making it an event," the Congress leader remarked.
"Today is our last day in this Parliament, I hope we can raise the dignity of our Parliamentary discussions & put out a unified message today," Union Minister of Commerce Piyush Goyal said while addressing the Rajya Sabha.
Speaking about the new Parliament building, the Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said: "Architect of modern India - Nehru - had said that parliamentary democracy demands many virtues which are ability, certain devotion to work, and also a large measure of corporation of self discipline and restraint."
"On one hand, we have Jammu and Kashmir, on the other Manipur: a lot more needs to be done," he said.
"Hours, days and months will be less to discuss the history of this Parliament...But even then, how beautifully our PM described the 75-year journey of the Parliament in brief and he talked about every section, not only the Prime Ministers but every worker who contributed to the smooth working of the Parliament," LJP MP Chirag Paswan told news agency ANI.
He also paid tribute to his father, the late Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, and called for the Women's Reservation Bill to be passed.
Speaking to news agency ANI, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said that the old Parliament building is full of memories.
"Let's hope that the new building has better facilities, new technology and more convenience for the members of the Parliament...But still, it is always an emotional moment to leave an institution which is so full of history and memories," he said.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MP Supriya Sule spoke about PM Modi's wishes, Question Hour decorum, and Private Members' Bills in the special session on 18 September.
Addressing the Lok Sabha, NCP MP Supriya Sule said that even as the prime minister behaved like a statesman, the treasury benches made the narrative political.
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi said in the Lok Sabha that if people have to raise voices on the streets, the Parliament will lose its relevance.
"Give me back my parliament, give me back my parliament which is not mocked, give me back my parliament which is not undermined, give me back my parliament where prime ministers come and answer questions on the floor of Lok Sabha and on the floor of Rajya Sabha..." said Trinamool Congress MP Derek O'Brien, while addressing the Rajya Sabha.
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