Govt, Oppn trade blows in Constitution debate

The government and the Opposition on Friday clashed in the Lok Sabha during the opening day of a historic debate to mark 75 years of the Constitution, with 26 speakers weighing in on themes ranging from reservation, politics, the administration's inclusive development agenda and the missteps by previous regimes.

Union defence minister Rajnath Singh opened the debate, mocking Opposition leaders for carrying copies of the Constitution in their pockets and alleged that the Congress always saw the document as a means to power.

"We have never played with the independence and autonomy of any institution. The values of the Constitution are not just a matter of saying or showing for us. The values of the Constitution, the path shown by the Constitution, the principles of the Constitution, will be visible everywhere in our minds, in our word, in deed," he said.

In response, Wayanad parliamentarian Priyanka Gandhi Vadra opened the debate for the Opposition and alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party was attempting to pierce the shield of security that the Constitution had provided to the ordinary citizen. She also said that the "Samvidhan, or Constitution, was not the "Sanghi-Vidhan", or rules set by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the ideological fount of the BJP.

"We have all read the story about the king who would change his attire to interact with people to get their feedback on his administration. Today's king loves to change clothes, but doesn't have the courage to listen to people. I am in this House for 15 days. So many big issues are here, but the PM was seen only for 10 minutes. The PM doesn't even sweat over Sambhal and Manipur," she said, referring to the violence in Uttar Pradesh that killed four people last month and the ongoing unrest in the northeastern state that has left 260 people dead.