Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed members at the Parliamentary Party meeting today
Highlights
- BJP said PM Modi ready to discuss cash ban but opposition backing out
- PM's speech to BJP lawmakers to air on Doordarshan, opposition objects
- 15 opposition parties to meet President today to protest against cash ban
At a meeting of BJP lawmakers this morning, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a strong pitch for a digital economy as a way of life and accused the opposition of being against the government's war of corruption. Union minister Ananth Kumar said after the meeting that PM Modi also exhorted the BJP to continue putting the nation before party, criticising the Opposition Congress for placing "party interest above national interest." PM Modi was addressing party lawmakers as the winter session of Parliament draws to a close today, washed out by protests over the government's ban on 500 and 1000 rupee notes aimed at unearthing black or undeclared money.
Here are the 10 latest developments:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Rahul Gandhi this morning in Parliament at the request of the Congress vice president, who wants to present a list of demands from farmers in Uttar Pradesh that he collected during a recent tour of the state, where assembly elections will be held soon.
Two days ago Mr Gandhi made the explosive claim that he has information on "personal corruption" of the Prime Minister. The BJP has dismissed it as "the joke of the year" and has challenged Mr Gandhi to make public the information he claims to have.
Rahul Gandhi has alleged that he is not being allowed to speak in Parliament by the government because it is "terrified" of the revelations he will make. He has said other opposition parties are aware of the damaging evidence he has against the PM.
This afternoon, opposition parties marched from Parliament to the presidential palace Rashtrapati Bhavan to meet President Pranab Mukherjee and protest against the notes ban and what they call the unrelenting hardship caused to people by the massive cash crunch that has followed. The Left, Samajwadi Party, BSP and NCP, however, decided not to be a part of this.
The winter session of Parliament has seen virtually no work done as the government and opposition have squabbled over how to debate the demonetisation - with or without a vote. Both sides have blamed the other for not letting the Houses function.
The BJP has said PM Modi has been ready to participate in a discussion on the notes ban, but the opposition is backing out of the debate as it realised that his move against corruption has the people's support. Also, the government says, the opposition has nothing substantial left to say.
On Thursday, the BJP also demanded that the Congress first give answers on the AgustaWestland helicopter deal after former Air Chief SP Tyagi, arrested on Friday, alleged that the then Congress government had tweaked the deal in favour of the UK-based helicopter maker.
"This is for the first time in the history of India that it's the ruling party that is not letting the House function," alleged the Congress's Ghulam Nabi Azad in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday.
After the Lok Sabha was adjourned on Thursday, BJP veteran LK Advani said out aloud that he "felt like resigning" at seeing the winter session being washed out by disruptions. Mr Advani has requested that a debate on the notes ban be held on the last day of the session today.
The government had lined up 10 important bills to be passed in the winter session. Only four have been passed and important legislation, including those related to the mega reform Goods and Services Tax or GST, will now get pushed to the Budget session which begins in January.
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