"M Kharge Spoke Freely Because...": PM Modi's Swipe At Congress Chief

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge was Prime Minister Narendra Modi's prime target today as he rose to speak during the debate on the Motion of Thanks to President Droupadi Murmu's address to Parliament.

Taking a swipe at the veteran leader's '400 seats' faux pas last week, the Prime Minister thanked him and said he has "hardly experienced such joy". He also said he hopes Mr Kharge's prediction comes true. "I welcome the '400 seats for NDA' blessing he has given us," he said.

Addressing Rajya Sabha on Friday on the issue of women's representation, the 81-year-old Congress chief was making a point about the government's majority in Lok Sabha. "Aapka itna bahumat hai, pehle 330,334 thi, ab to '400 paar' ho raha hai (You have a majority of 330, 334 seats and 400 is being crossed now)," he said.

The veteran leader was referring to the BJP's slogan and target of winning 400 seats in the upcoming polls. The treasury benches, however, had a good time as they projected it as Mr Kharge's endorsement of their target. "Today, Kharge ji has finally said the truth and nothing but the truth," Leader of the House and Union Minister Piyush Goyal said.

In a swipe at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, he said there is hardly any "entertainment" in Lok Sabha. He then went on to wonder how Mr Kharge was able to speak at length in the Upper House.

"I was pleased that Mr Kharge spoke at length, but I wondered how he got the freedom to speak so much. Then I realised two special commanders were not there. Mr Kharge made use of this opportunity. So he was having fun hitting fours and sixes. He must have heard the song, 'Aisa mauka phir kaha milega'," the Prime Minister said.

The 'two commanders' jab was a reference to senior Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh and KC Venugopal, who were not in the House on Friday.

Doubling down on his criticism of former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, the Prime Minister said, "Nehru once wrote a letter to Chief Ministers in which he said he was against reservation and that promoted inefficiency in the system and non-meritorious people. The party has always been against the interest of SC/STs."

In his Lok Sabha speech, the Prime Minister had quoted a speech by Nehru to claim the India's first Prime Minister considered the people of the country lazy and dull.

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has accused the Prime Minister of "misrepresenting" lines from Nehru's speech. "Not only is it shameful to misrepresent a few lines from the speech of the country's first Prime Minister, it also shows how much bitterness is filled in the minds of Prime Minister Modi ji, the BJP and the RSS towards our freedom movement and historical struggles for nation building," the Congress leader said.