Goa Congress' parliamentary affairs committee endorses Rahul Gandhi's UK speech

The All India Congress Committee's Goa desk in-charge said Gandhi's statement was twisted by the BJP and the media close to the BJP

The parliamentary affairs committee of the Goa Pradesh Congress Committee on Saturday endorsed party leader Rahul Gandhi's statements in the UK.

The committee members unanimously passed a resolution supporting Gandhi. The All India Congress Committee's Goa desk in-charge Manickam Tagore told reporters that the parliamentary affairs committee of the GPCC “completely endorsed the views of Rahul Gandhi.”

The resolution was moved by former Union External Affairs Minister Eduardo Faleiro, he said. Tagore said Rahul Gandhi had not said anything wrong. “His statement was twisted by the BJP and the media close to the BJP,” he claimed.

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Speaking about the current situation in Parliament, Tagore said that for the first time in Parliament's history, the ruling party is involved in forcing adjournment of proceedings. “Only ministers were allowed to speak. All the opposition parties were stopped from speaking. No member from opposition was given opportunity to speak,” he claimed.

Rahul Gandhi wanted to speak but he too was not allowed, Tagore said. “On Friday, the Lok Sabha television was muted. For the first time in history, no voice from the Lok Sabha was aired. It is a black day for democratic proceedings and this attack on parliamentary proceedings show that the Modi government does not believe in democratic process,” he said.

Opposition parties are together in their fight against the government on Adani `scam', demanding probe by a Joint Parliamentary Committee, he said. During his interactions in the UK, Rahul Gandhi alleged that the structures of Indian democracy are under attack and there is a "full-scale assault" on the country's institutions.

He also told British parliamentarians in London that microphones are often "turned off" in the Lok Sabha when an opposition member raises important issues. Gandhi's remarks triggered a political slugfest, with the BJP accusing him of maligning India on foreign soil and seeking foreign interventions, and the Congress hitting back at the ruling party by citing instances of prime minister Narendra Modi raising internal politics abroad.