Mallikarjun Kharge Jabs Nirmala Sitharaman For Attack On Nehru, Accuses RSS Of Rejecting Constitution

In a pointed response to Nirmala Sitharaman's criticism of former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru during a debate on the Constitution, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge highlighted that the Union Finance Minister herself had graduated from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).

Speaking in the Rajya Sabha, Kharge remarked that while Sitharaman may be an "economic expert", her actions were questionable.

"I have to tell them that I also know how to read. I studied in a municipality school. She (Nirmala Sitharaman) studied at Jawaharlal Nehru University. It is certain that her English will be good, her Hindi will be good, but her deeds are not good," Kharge quipped.

Kharge's remarks came after Sitharaman accused Nehru of stifling freedom of speech in 1951 through a constitutional amendment.

'RSS didn't accept the Constitution'

Targeting the BJP for attacking the Gandhi family, Kharge accused the party's ideological parent, the RSS, of rejecting the Indian Constitution and the national flag.

"Those who hated the tricolour, Ashok Chakra, and the Constitution are now giving us lessons on the Constitution. When the Constitution was adopted, these people burnt it. They torched effigies of Babasaheb Ambedkar, Jawaharlal Nehru, and Mahatma Gandhi at Ramleela Maidan (in Delhi) the day the Constitution came into force," he said.

Echoing Rahul Gandhi, Kharge further alleged that the RSS opposed the Constitution because it was not rooted in the Manusmriti.

"The RSS opposed the Constitution because it was not based on Manusmriti. They neither accepted the Constitution nor the tricolour. On January 26, 2002, for the first time, the tricolour was hoisted at the RSS headquarters under compulsion," Kharge claimed.

Kharge calls Modi "number one liar"

Calling Prime Minister Narendra Modi the "number one liar", Kharge criticised his government for failing to deliver on its promises.

"It was said that Rs 15 lakh would come, but nothing came... these people are misleading the country and deceiving the people by lying. The Prime Minister should have told us what he has done over the last 11 years to strengthen the Constitution," Kharge said.

Draw inspiration from Indira Gandhi

With December 16 marking Vijay Diwas, the day India defeated Pakistan in the 1971 war and facilitated the creation of Bangladesh, Kharge urged the BJP to take inspiration from former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

"Today is Bangladesh Liberation Day. The late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi saved our nation, she was the Iron Lady. Maybe BJP leaders can be inspired by her to protect minorities there," he said, referencing the persecution of Hindus in Bangladesh amid recent unrest.