'Na Lift Ho Raha, Na Launch': PM Modi Takes A Jibe at Rahul Gandhi, Calls Him 'Non-starter Yuvraj' | Rajya Sabha Updates

Following a fiery speech filled with jibe at the Congress, the opposition’s failure and the next election, during his reply to the ‘Motion of Thanks’ in the Lok Sabha on Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is now replying to the motion in the Rajya Sabha.

Later, the prime minister will also chair a meeting to select a candidate for the post of election commissioner. A vacancy will open up in the three-member poll panel when Election Commissioner Anup Chandra Pandey demits office on February 14.

PM MODI’S REPLY TO ‘MOTION OF THANKS’ IN RS

• PM Modi, after expressing his gratitude to President Murmu’s speech, took a jibe at Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge gave him a ‘special thanks’.
• The prime minister referred to Kharge giving his ‘blessing’ to the NDA for winning 400 seats in the upcoming general elections and said, “aapka ashirwaad sir aankhon par“.
• Strongly hitting at the Congress, the prime minister said that they “murdered the democracy”, “violated democratic values”. He said that the grand old party is now trying to break the ‘North-South’. “…And they are teaching us federalism?” the PM questioned.
• In his fiery speech, PM Modi accused Congress of “openly strangling democracy”. He said, “the Congress that dissolved democratically-elected governments overnight, the Congress that jailed the Constitutional decorum, the Congress that tried to lock up newspapers – that Congress has now acquired the habit to create narratives of breaking the country.”
• “The Congress who allowed extremism to grow in the North East, the Congress who gave land of our country to other nations, the party which stopped modernisation of defence,” the PM said are now teaching his government “about internal security”.
• PM Modi termed the Congress’ thinking to be “outdated”, adding that this is why they have ‘outsourced their work’.
• Highlighting the difference in the growth of the nation’s economy, the prime minister said that the Congress spent 10 years in bringing India from 12th to 11th, just one position up. “During the Congress’ time…we were in fragile five,” PM Modi said, adding that now our economy is “in top five”.
• The prime minister posed several questions in his speech in the Upper House. Pointing at Congress, he asked “…Who was inspired by Britishers? Who pushed the mentality of slavery? Why did we get budget at 5 am? Why insignia of pre-Independence used for defence forces? Why Rajpath had to wait for Modi for it to become Kartavya Path?”
• Hitting out at ‘British-inspired’ Congress, PM Modi said that he feels “pity” for the party which “blindly follows Nehru”.
• Congress is against the “backward classes, Dalits and tribals”, the prime minister said, adding that if it wasn’t for Babasaheb (BR Ambedkar)  these people might not even have received reservation.
• PM Modi said that Congress did not even consider “Babasaheb worth of Bharat Ratna” and kept giving the award only to its family. “They are now preaching and teaching us the lesson of social justice. Those who have no guarantee as a leader are raising questions about Modi’s guarantee….” he added.
• The prime minister said that he would back his claims by quoting the then PM late Jawaharlal Nehru’s letter to the then Chief Ministers.
• “…I am reading out its translation – “I dislike any kind of reservation, more particularly in services. I am strongly against anything which leads to inefficiency and second rate standards..,” That is why I say that they are against it (reservation) by birth…Had the government recruited at that time and promoted them from time to time, they would have been here today,” PM Modi said while reading out the letter.
• Taking a swipe at Rahul Gandhi, the prime minister said that “Congress has given a startup to its yuvraj (prince), but the yuvraj is a non-starter”. “Na woh lift ho raha hai, na launch ho raha hai,” PM Modi said.
• The Congress has spread narratives about Indian culture, the party made ‘Made in Foreign’ a status symbol.
• “These people can never talk about ‘Vocal for Local’, ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’, he said, adding that, “…In her address, the President addressed all of us in detail about the 4 largest castes. These 4 castes are –youth, women, poor and our food providers. We know that they have similar problems and dreams. The ways to solve the problems of these four categories are also similar…”
• The prime minister also touched upon the struggle that the nation went through during the times of Covid-19. He said his “country is in every state”.
• Talking about Congress’ narrative in wanting to divide the country, PM Modi said that the country should not be divided, adding that, “if a state takes on step, then Centre takes two steps towards the state”.
• Exuding confidence, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that his government is not far from its third tenure. “Some people call this as ‘Modi 3.0’,” he added.
• Talking about his vision for the nation in the next five years, he said that “electricity bill will be zero because of solar power”, educational aspirations of the nation’s children will be fulfilled due to “top class universities” and ‘Made in India’ will be at the “top”.

PARLIAMENT UPDATES

• The Centre’s ‘White Paper’ on economic mismanagement by the UPA regime will be tabled in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha on February 10.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will reply to the ‘Motion of Thanks’ to President Droupadi Murmu’s address in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.
• However, there is a lot of heat boiling up in the Opposition after the PM’s reply to the motion in the Lok Sabha on Monday. Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had accused PM Modi of “misrepresenting” lines from former PM Jawaharlal Nehru’s speech. Vadra said that this is not only “shameful” but it also shows the “bitterness” in the minds of the BJP towards the freedom movement and the historical struggles.
• PM Modi will also chair a meeting to select a candidate for the Election Commissioner post on Wednesday. This is in view of the vacancy that will come up once the current election commissioner Anup Chandra Pandey will retire on February 14.
• The Centre is planning to bring a White Paper to the House on the state of the nation’s economy, which compares the UPA years and the 10 years of Modi government. In view of this, the Parliament session, has also been extended by a day.
• The White Paper is likely to settle the long-standing debate on ‘issue of the economy’ completely before the arrival of the Lok Sabha elections.
• The Lok Sabha on Tuesday passed a bill — The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 — which deals with malpractices and irregularities in competitive exams.
• Union Minister Jitendra Singh tabled the bill which seeks to deal strictly with the unfair practices in competitive exams with provisions for a maximum jail term of ten years and a fine up to Rs 1 crore. Singh said that these provisions are meant to safeguard the interest of meritorious students and candidates.

(With PTI inputs)