Congress Chief Kharge accuses PM Narendra Modi of undermining democracy

NEW DELHI — Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of tarnishing democracy by not speaking in Parliament and instead making political speeches outside.

He said the country has not seen a “darker period than this” in the history of Parliament.

Kharge also dubbed the central government as a “blot on humanity” for its “indifference” towards Manipur, which he said was “burning” for the last 85 days.

He said people have now become aware and will fight “this kind of politics”.

“The Parliament session is going on and instead of speaking on the floor, the prime minister is making speeches here and there and by doing so he is tarnishing democracy.

“The misdeeds of the Modi government cannot be erased by calling names to the opposition parties,” Kharge said.

The Congress chief also hit out at the BJP for not allowing him to speak inside Parliament and for jeering at opposition members for wearing black clothes as a mark of protest for not allowing them to raise the Manipur issue in Parliament.

“Only those having a mindset against Dalits, tribals and backward people can make fun of black clothes, but for us black is a symbol of protest and strength. Black colour is a symbol of justice and a symbol of dignity. The people of Manipur deserve justice, peace and respect,” he said in a tweet in Hindi.

Kharge said the BJP cannot run away from its responsibility by plunging the life of Manipur into “black darkness”, by adopting a “dictatorial attitude” and diverting the attention from the issue.

“There has never been a darker period in the history of Parliament than this,” he said.

“Today, people have become aware and they will fight and continue to do so…This means you do not want to talk in Parliament – the temple of democracy, and want to give a political speech in Rajasthan while opening new medical colleges,” Kharge told reporters outside Parliament while attacking the prime minister for not speaking in Parliament on the Manipur violence.

He said the burning of Manipur is a “black chapter” for the country.

The government which did not take care of the crying people of Manipur in the last 85 days that “government is a blot on humanity”, he alleged.

The opposition has been accusing the prime minister of not making a statement in Parliament on the northeastern state, which has seen violence since May 3.

Both Houses of Parliament have not been able to transact any business amid the uproar caused by the opposition, demanding a statement from the prime minister and a discussion on Manipur thereafter.