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The Lok Sabha on Tuesday witnessed interesting moments with BJP leader Rajnath Singh and Home Minister P. Chidambaram locking horns on the “power centres” in each other's organisations and reasons for the defeats faced by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and United Progressive Alliance (UPA) at the hustings.
It all began with Mr. Singh who referred to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's recent interaction with the electronic media wherein he had admitted there were “certain compulsions in coalition politics and compromises have to be made.” Quoting from the teachings of strategist Chanakya, the BJP leader said the kingdom would be destroyed if there were two kings. “Likewise there are many power centres” in the country today, he said obviously referring to decisions taken at the level of Dr. Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
Vehemently denying this, Mr. Chidambaram referred to the “defeat” of the BJP-led NDA in the 2004 Lok Sabha polls and again its “crushing defeat” in the 2009 election and sarcastically wanted to know from Mr. Singh who were those two kings (without naming Mr. Vajpayee and Mr. Advani) who destroyed the BJP and its election prospects.
Though taken aback with this comment and even as the treasury benches were thumping desks in support of Mr. Chidambaram's comments, Mr. Rajnath Singh retorted wanting to know if the UPA-II's policies were good why the combine lost in the Bihar Assembly poll. “What happened to your policies and programmes?” he asked.
Listing irregularities in allocation of 2G spectrum, Adarsh Housing Society, organisation of the Common Wealth Games, the Antrix-Devas spectrum deal and in the appointment of Chief Vigilance Commissioner P.J. Thomas, Mr. Rajnath Singh wanted to know what was the pressure (from coalition partners) under which the PM was functioning. “If you are under pressure will you allow corruption to go on like this?”
If coalition compulsion was the reason, then why did the UPA-I go ahead with the nuclear deal despite objections from the Left parties, which were supporting it from outside. Which partner of the coalition was pressuring him (Dr. Singh) now not to fight corruption?
Mr. Rajnath Singh denied as a “baseless allegation” Dr. Singh's recent remarks that the BJP was opposed to reforms in the Goods and Service Tax brought by the UPA-II regime just because a Gujarat Minister (Amit Shah) was arrested (in the CBI probe relating to the Sohrabuddin fake encounter case).
It all began with Mr. Singh who referred to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's recent interaction with the electronic media wherein he had admitted there were “certain compulsions in coalition politics and compromises have to be made.” Quoting from the teachings of strategist Chanakya, the BJP leader said the kingdom would be destroyed if there were two kings. “Likewise there are many power centres” in the country today, he said obviously referring to decisions taken at the level of Dr. Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
Vehemently denying this, Mr. Chidambaram referred to the “defeat” of the BJP-led NDA in the 2004 Lok Sabha polls and again its “crushing defeat” in the 2009 election and sarcastically wanted to know from Mr. Singh who were those two kings (without naming Mr. Vajpayee and Mr. Advani) who destroyed the BJP and its election prospects.
Though taken aback with this comment and even as the treasury benches were thumping desks in support of Mr. Chidambaram's comments, Mr. Rajnath Singh retorted wanting to know if the UPA-II's policies were good why the combine lost in the Bihar Assembly poll. “What happened to your policies and programmes?” he asked.
Listing irregularities in allocation of 2G spectrum, Adarsh Housing Society, organisation of the Common Wealth Games, the Antrix-Devas spectrum deal and in the appointment of Chief Vigilance Commissioner P.J. Thomas, Mr. Rajnath Singh wanted to know what was the pressure (from coalition partners) under which the PM was functioning. “If you are under pressure will you allow corruption to go on like this?”
If coalition compulsion was the reason, then why did the UPA-I go ahead with the nuclear deal despite objections from the Left parties, which were supporting it from outside. Which partner of the coalition was pressuring him (Dr. Singh) now not to fight corruption?
Mr. Rajnath Singh denied as a “baseless allegation” Dr. Singh's recent remarks that the BJP was opposed to reforms in the Goods and Service Tax brought by the UPA-II regime just because a Gujarat Minister (Amit Shah) was arrested (in the CBI probe relating to the Sohrabuddin fake encounter case).