Kiren Rijiju and Jairam Ramesh traded barbs before the House met today
In what appears to be a trailer to a stormy Parliament session, two senior parliamentarians of the ruling BJP and the Opposition Congress traded barbs this morning, hours before the new Lok Sabha meets.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister and senior BJP leader Kiren Rijiju posted a welcome message for members of the 18th Lok Sabha this morning. "The First Session of 18th Lok Sabha begins today, the 24th June, 2024. I welcome all the new elected hon'ble members. I shall be always available to assist the members as Minister of Parliamentary Affairs. I'm positively looking forward for co-ordination to run the house," he said.
The post drew a sharp barb from senior Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh. "Actions will speak louder than words Mr. Minister. Walk the Talk," he said in reply to the minister's post.
Mr Rijiju responded that the Congress leader can be an "asset to the House if you contribute positively". "Absolutely @Jairam_Ramesh Ji. You are an intelligent member and you will be a valuable asset to the house if you contribute positively. Differences will remain amongst political parties in Parliamentary Democracy but we are united in our service to the nation. Looking forward to your cooperation in maintaining India's rich Parliamentary traditions," he said.
In no mood to back down, Mr Ramesh responded with a swipe featuring the National Testing Agency (NTA), which has left the government red-faced owing to irregularities in conduct of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test. "Thanks Mr. Minister. I hope your certificate of my intelligence is not like the NTA grading. Is it with grace marks?," Mr Ramesh said.
Buoyed by its good show in this general election that denied a majority to the BJP, the Opposition is gearing up to corner the ruling party on key issues. This biggest among them is mismanagement in the conduct of all-India competitive exams such as the NEET (UG and PG) and UGC-NET.
Another issue that has emerged as a flashpoint between the treasury and the Opposition benches in the election of the pro-tem Speaker. While the BJP has chosen its seven-time MP Bhartruhari Mahtab for the temporary post, the Congress has questioned why its eight-time MP K Suresh was not selected. Mr Rijiju has explained that Mr Suresh's term in the House is not uninterrupted, but the Congress is not ready to budge and has announced that members of the INDIA Opposition bloc will not assist the pro-tem Speaker in administering the oath to the new MPs.