"Your slogans can't drown my voice," PM Modi told opposition leaders in Lok Sabha
Prime Minister Narendra Modi continued the scathing attack on Congress that he started in Lok Sabha, telling Rajya Sabha this afternoon that he was speaking there since "no one listened" to him in the Lok Sabha. His 90-minute speech in the Lower House was punctuated with continuous slogan-shouting by the opposition lawmakers, so much so that at one point, the Prime Minister said, "Your slogans can't drown my voice, I wish the opposition listened to me quietly".
The government, though, had worked to prevent just such an eventuality. Home Minister Rajnath Singh had called up Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu earlier to request that their lawmakers don't shout slogans and hold protests during the Prime Minister's speech. The request was accepted, lawmakers from the Telugu Desam Party had told NDTV.
The party, the BJP's biggest ally in south, has been extremely upset with the centre for what they call failure to meet the promises made as part of the AP Reorganisation Act during the bifurcation of Telangana. The state has also been angling for special category status.
After the budget, it started talking of calling off the alliance, alleging that Andhra Pradesh has been neglected. After an internal meeting, it had decided to give the government time till the budget session to rectify the error.
The protests had snowballed on Tuesday after Rajya Sabha chairperson Venkaiah Naidu adjourned the session when a TDP lawmaker proposed a discussion on the promises made to the state during Telangana bifurcation and the special development packages that were promised later.
The Lok Sabha had to be adjourned twice following similar protests from the TDP members, who had come armed with posters and placards, which, at one point had irked the Speaker.
The government had promised to look into their demands, calling it a "sensitive issue".