BJP’s Counter to Opposition On Why President Is Not Inaugurating New Parliament Building

The Congress has lashed out at the BJP after it was reported that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the new Parliament building.

The Congress has been questioning why the President of India will not be inaugurating the new building.

Hitting out at the Congress, Union Minister, Hardeep Singh Puri said, "Congress has a habit of raking controversies where none exist. While President is the Head of State, PM is the Head of Govt and leads the Parliament on behalf of the Govt, whose Policies are effected in form of Laws. The President is not a Member of either House, whereas PM is."

Congress leader, Manish Tewari cited Article 79 of the Indian Constitution and said, "there shall be a Parliament for the Union which shall consist of the President and two Houses to be known respectively as the council of States and the House of the People. Ministers of the Union must read the Constitution of India very carefully."

The new Parliament building will be inaugurated by PM Modi on May 28. Incidentally the building is being inaugurated on the birth anniversary of V D Savarkar. The Congress leaders and others from the opposition have been questioning why the PM is inaugurating the building and not the president.

"The Office of the President of India is reduced to tokenism under the BJP-RSS government,"Congress chief, Mallikarjun Kharge said.

President alone represents the government, opposition and every citizen aline, Kharge also said.

"Articles 60 and 111 of the Constitution of India make it clear that the President is the head of parliament. It was bizarre enough that the PM performed the ground-breaking ceremony & puja when construction began, but totally incomprehensible (& arguably unconstitutional) for him and not the President to inaugurate the building," Congress MP, Shashi Tharoor said.

"First, the permanent house the Rajya Sabha, the Council of States and then the House of the People, the Lok Sabha. Why the Council of States? Because India is a union of states. And the Chairman of Rajya Sabha is the number 2 in the warrant of precedence, the honourable Vice President of India," Congress leader Anand Sharma said.

"First, the permanent house the Rajya Sabha, the Council of States and then the House of the People, the Lok Sabha. Why the Council of States? Because India is a union of states. And the Chairman of Rajya Sabha is the number 2 in the warrant of precedence, the honourable Vice President of India," Shiv Sena (UBT) leader, Priyanka Chaturvedi said in a tweet.