नवीनतम
Ravi Shankar Prasad slams Oppn in LS debate on electoral reforms
NEW DELHI [Maha Media]: BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad took aim at the Opposition, accusing them of only praising the Election Commission when results are in their favour and attacking it when they lose.
Responding to Congress MP K Venugopal and other Opposition leaders during the Lok Sabha discussion on electoral reforms, Prasad said the Opposition's shifting stance on the EC revealed a clear contradiction.
"Will the Election Commission be considered fair only when they win? Was it not the same EC when their governments were formed in Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, and Telangana? Did Akhilesh Yadav's party not win more MPs than us in Uttar Pradesh in 2024? When they win, the EC is fair; when we win, the EC is flawed. What logic is this?" asked the BJP MP as he came down heavily on the opposition.
"I heard the speeches of Venugopal ji and other Opposition members. One thing that stays with me is this, What is the reason behind this bitterness? Why this pain, this anguish?" Prasad said. "If the public doesn't vote for you, then suddenly the Election Commission is at fault? If people reject you, what are we supposed to do?"
Prasad also questioned what he described as an unusually harsh tone in their speeches. "What is the reason behind this bitterness? Why this pain, this anguish?" he said. "If people don't vote for you, suddenly the Election Commission becomes the problem? If people reject you, what are we supposed to do?" he added.
Referring to allegations related to elections in Bihar, Prasad said that the Opposition frequently criticises his home state. "You talk so much about my Bihar. There was so much commotion during the election, but they ended up winning just five seats," he said.
"Rahul Gandhi campaigned extensively, Tejashwi also campaigned, yet the result was only five seats," he added.
Furthermore, BJP MP argued that voters supported the BJP-JD(U) alliance because of the work done by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. "People did not vote for them because they have seen the work of the Modi and Nitish governments. Unless they accept this reality, how will things move forward?" Prasad asked.
He also questioned Venugopal's conduct, saying that he is a petitioner in a SIR-related Supreme Court matter. "Parliament has a decorum. If you are a petitioner in the Supreme Court on an issue and then raise that issue here, do we not have the right to question your impartiality? Is that not part of my parliamentary responsibility?" he asked.
Prasad raised a formal objection during the debate and demanded that, if his concerns were validated in the inquiry, the controversial remarks made by Opposition members be deleted from the House records.
Prasad's remarks came after Congress general secretary and Rajya Sabha MP KC Venugopal accused the Election Commission of "abandoning neutrality" and "enabling vote chori", sparking strong protests from the treasury benches.
He further accused the BJP of trying to rule the country by "misusing agencies like the ED, CBI and the Election Commission," while adding that the final mandate lies with the people. He also remarked that although the BJP speaks of patriotism today, "their ancestors never fought the British".
Meanwhile, today is the second day of discussion on electoral reforms in the Lok Sabha. A total of 10 hours has been earmarked for the entire discussion in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.
In today’s Lok Sabha proceedings, several union Ministers are also scheduled to lay papers on the Table. Rao Inderjit Singh will present documents on behalf of the Ministry of Planning.
Dr. Jitendra Singh is slated to lay papers for multiple key departments, including the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Department of Atomic Energy, and the Department of Space. itin Prasada will represent the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, and Dr. Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani will table papers for the Ministry of Communications. Satish Chandra Dubey will lay papers on behalf of the Ministry of Coal and the Ministry of Mines, and Nimuben Jayantibhai Bambhaniya will present documents for the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution.
Alongside the ministers, the Standing Committee on Finance is scheduled to present its Final Action Taken Statements in both Hindi and English on recommendations made in its recent reports. These include the 19th to 24th Reports (18th Lok Sabha) covering Action Taken on Demands for Grants (2025–26) across multiple departments of the Ministry of Finance, including Economic Affairs, Expenditure, Public Enterprises, Revenue, Corporate Affairs, Planning (NITI Aayog), Statistics and Programme Implementation, and Financial Services.
In addition, the Standing Committee on Coal, Mines and Steel will present its 15th Report for 2025–26. The report will focus on “Expediting and Simplifying the Environment and Forest Clearance Process for Coal Mining Projects” and highlight steps taken and recommendations to streamline approvals while mainitaining environmenatl safeguards.
