We strengthened Constitution, Congress wounded it, says PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that the Congress repeatedly wounded the Constitution while his government's policies and decisions since it took office in 2014 have been aimed at boosting India's strength and unity in line with the vision of the Constitution.

- Agencies

NEW DELHI:

Replying to a two-day debate in Lok Sabha on the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution, he took a swipe at the past Congress governments, accusing them of planting "poisonous" seeds in the country's diversity to accentuate its contradictions and damage its unity.

Training guns at the Nehru-Gandhi family of the Congress, he said they left no stone unturned to strike blows to the Constitution.

"This family challenged the Constitution at every level," he said, adding that he was singling out the family as its members were in power for 55 years.

The family, having "tasted blood", repeatedly wounded the Constitution, he said, citing several decisions of Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi when they held the office of prime minister.

Their next generation is also into the same game, he said in a swipe at the Leader of Opposition in the House Rahul Gandhi and his MP sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.

While the makers of the Constitution took a considered decision to disallow reservation on the basis of religion and faith in the interest of the country's unity and integrity, the Congress in its "greed for power" and to "appease its vote bank" pushed for it in violation of the constitutional spirit, he said.

His government, Modi said, repealed Article 370 to unify the country and brought in GST to roll out "one nation one tax" regime.