Starting the debate on the constitution in the Lok Sabha on Friday, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh asked the opposition to prepare a blueprint for the way forward in terms of allocation of reservations if there is to be a caste census and called for a discussion on it. House in it.
“I have no problem with the demand for caste census, but people should not be deceived. You should bring a blueprint of how much reservation you want to give to which caste. If such a blueprint is presented, I suggest that Parliament can discuss it,” Singh said.
Beginning his speech by paying tribute to security personnel who laid down their lives to protect Parliament in the December 13, 2001 terror attack, Singh said a political party tried to claim the Constitution as its own despite going to a mass funeral. its construction.
Some claim that one party gave the constitution. The fact is that our Constitution is an expression of the values of our civilization. It carries the legacy of our freedom struggle,’ he said, ‘It is a roadmap for national unity and integrity and the dignity of citizens. There were also people who were not members of the Constituent Assembly whose legacy is part of the Constitution. We must remember that Pandit Malviya, Sardar Patel, Sardar Bhagat Singh and Veer Savarkar also contributed to its ethos.
The mention of Savarkar led to interruptions from the opposition benches.
Seeking to connect the constitution with the BJP’s ideological family, Singh said, “Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee believed that the constitution should be the result of collective ethos and consensus. In 1944, the constitution of the independent state of Hindustan contained the views of many leaders on what the constitution should be. The state should have religious freedom. It also gave every citizen the right to protect their culture. The Congress was saying that it should be secular. He was very inspired by that document The Center wanted and advocated a democratic constitution, but all this was never mentioned.”
Singh added, “One party has tried to hijack and hijack the Constitution. All these things are hidden. Our constitution is not a gift of any party, it belongs to the people of India.
Seeking to connect the Constitution with ‘civilizational values’, Singh said the Mahabharata told the king to follow raj dharma (king’s duty) and that his powers should be used for the good of the people. Our constitution is also committed to the welfare of the people. In Part IV, Directive Principles of State Policy, this becomes clear,” he added.
He quoted Dr BR Ambedkar as saying that republics were common in ancient India and the Buddhist Sangha knew parliamentary practices, therefore seeing the Constitution as an expression of India’s past. ‘In the original copy of our constitution, in part 3 where the fundamental rights are discussed, there is a depiction of Lord Rama, Sita and Lakshmana. Ajanta cave paintings and lotus are also depicted. The latter marks our coming out of centuries of slavery…,” Singh said.
Our constitution has enabled people from poor families to become prime minister or president. It was neglected after independence but our government is committed to it. We have broken the colonial bonds and introduced new penal laws,” he said.
Singh then asserted that the government schemes—fixed houses, free treatment and free rations for the poor, and tap water and toilets in homes—were concrete expressions of the constitutional ethos. Our government is working for the development of women leadership and has passed the Nari Shakti Bandan Act. Our government gave constitutional status to the OBC Commission. We have also introduced EWS quota,’ he said.
Referring to the abrogation of Article 370 which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir in 2019, Singh said that the (Narendra) Modi government also enforced the constitution in the state where it was not applicable, and people voted in large numbers and elections were held. That state was free of violence.
Singh acknowledged the contribution of Dr. Ambedkar, KM Munshi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee etc. in the making of the Constitution. “Today I also pay tribute to the founding mothers of our Constitution. “Eleven women have also signed the constitution,” he added.
Attacking the Congress for accusing the BJP of trying to change the Constitution, Singh said, referring to the 1975-77 Emergency, “Today there are people who talk about defending the Constitution. But we have to remember who respected the Constitution and who insulted it. I am a former Supreme Court judge. I will refer to HR Khanna’s autobiography, neither Roses nor Thorns. He wrote that he had told his younger sister that he had prepared a verdict which he Can spend the post of Chief Justice. It happened in 1976. In the case of ADM Jabalpur, he gave a dissenting judgment against the then government. Today that party talks about the constitution. They never liked the independence of the institution. They always want a committed judiciary.
Singh added, “I have seen that some opposition leaders are walking around with copies of the constitution in their pockets. They have learned this since childhood. They have seen the constitution in their pocket for generations. But the BJP keeps the constitution on its forehead.
He cited the abrogation of Article 370 and changes in GST as constitutional amendments that the Modi government brought in to “strengthen” the Constitution. He said, ‘Even before the first general election, the Congress had banned freedom of speech in the first amendment of the constitution.
Singh then accused the Congress of focusing on the Emergency and amending the Constitution several times to damage it. The ruling Congress has made some amendments to cripple the constitution. They tried to make the Emergency extrajudicial in 1975. In 1976, the 43rd Constitutional Amendment sought to exempt the Prime Minister, President and Governor from any judicial action taken by them.
Singh also mentioned that the 42nd amendment to the constitution tried to reverse the basic structure of the constitution. Wasn’t all this a conspiracy to make the people citizens again by making the constitution a tool to fulfill the dictator’s agenda? Trying to find out, Singh added, “I also spent 18 months in jail. I was in solitary confinement for two months and could not even get parole for my mother’s funeral.
He said that Indira Gandhi misused Article 356 50 times to dismiss elected governments. “Congress chose power based on the constitution, when there was an option,” he said, adding that the Kalyan Singh government was dismissed on December 6, 1992 after the demolition of the Babri Masjid, though he resigned as chief minister. . He also recalled that when Kalyan Singh led the coalition government a few years later, even though he proved his majority in the House, the governor overruled him.
Criticizing Rahul Gandhi for his critical comments on India’s situation abroad, Singh said, “In Geneva in 1995, when Pakistan was making a resolution on Kashmir, Narasimha Rao (Atal Bihari) sent Vajpayee to present India’s position. He praised Rao there and on his return to India again joined the government. When I see some leaders go abroad and criticize India, this incident seems like a story, but every party should behave like a mature opposition Must understand.
Singh blamed the Congress for not implementing Article 44 of the Constitution, which talks about a uniform civil code, for “politics of appeasement”. He said, ‘In the Shah Bano case, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the divorced woman, but due to the politics of appeasement, the then Congress government overturned the legal decision.
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