Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's recent remarks at Cambridge University regarding the status of democracy in India triggered a political slugfest with the BJP accusing him of maligning India on foreign soil.
As Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's controversial remarks on democracy and surveillance during his recent visit to Cambridge University continue to intensify, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday came out in his support and said that there is nothing for which the former needs to apologise.
"This is blatant kind of politics because Rahul Gandhi didn't say what he's accused of. He specified that 'we'll solve issues internally and just want everyone to be aware, Indian democracy is global public good'. There's nothing that he needs to apologise for," Tharoor told reporters in the Parliament premises.
Tharoor's support for Gandhi comes at a time when Parliament is witnessing an increasing ruckus over the Congress leader's statements in London.
Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned till 2 pm on Tuesday amid uproar over Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's democracy remarks.
As the Lok Sabha met for the day, Speaker Om Birla urged members to let the House function and took up the Question Hour.
Asking the Congress members, who were on their feet, to maintain the decorum of the House and not show placards, Birla said they should let the House function.
However, Congress members continued their protest following which the speaker adjourned the House till 2 pm.
Lok Sabha proceedings were disrupted on Monday as well as the BJP-Congress slugfest escalated over Gandhi's remark with the Government seeking an apology while the opposition benches demanded a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the Adani-Hindenburg issue.
Additionally, Modi also hit out at Gandhi over his remarks in the United Kingdom.
"It is unfortunate that from the soil of London, questions are being raised on Indian democracy," PM Modi said.
Today, PM Modi said, "India is not only the largest democracy but is the mother of democracy...It's unfortunate that in London, questions were raised about India's democracy. Some people are constantly questioning India's democracy." He was on his visit to poll-bound Karnataka where he inaugurated a slew of development projects worth Rs 16,000 crore.
He also said, "No power in this world can harm India's democratic traditions, but some are making it stand in the dock."
Rahul Gandhi had also alleged that the Israeli spyware was installed on the phones of a large number of politicians, including him while referring to the controversial Pegasus snooping issue. His remarks had triggered a political slugfest with the BJP accusing him of maligning India on foreign soil and the Congress hit back by citing instances of Prime Minister Narendra Modi raking up internal pol
Rahul Gandhi's during his recent lectures at Cambridge University said that in India, the media, the institutional frameworks, the judiciary, and the Parliament are all under attack.
"Indian democracy is under pressure and under attack. The institutional framework which is required for a democracy… Parliament, free press, the judiciary, just the idea of mobilisation — these are all getting constrained. We are facing an attack on the basic structure of democracy," he had said.
His statement which said that he was under surveillance triggered a political slugfest with the BJP accusing him of maligning India on foreign soil and the Congress hitting back by citing instances of Prime Minister Narendra Modi raking up internal politics abroad.
"I, myself, had Pegasus on my phone. A large number of politicians have Pegasus on their phones. I've been called by intelligence officers who say please be careful what you say on the phone because we are sort of recording this stuff. So, this is a constant pressure that we feel," the 52-year-old former Congress chief claimed at the lecture, a video recording of which was posted on Twitter by Congress leader Sam Pitroda, ex-adviser to former prime minister Manmohan Singh.
Gandhi, who is a visiting fellow of the Cambridge Judge Business School, during a lecture 'Learning to Listen in the 21st Century' on Tuesday evening said Indian democracy is under attack and several politicians, including himself, are under surveillance.
(with PTI inputs)