PM Modi targets Kejriwal, Rahul Gandhi in Lok Sabha speech; says government proud of middle class

He also slammed former Congress chief Sonia Gandhi's remarks over the speech of President Droupadi Murmu in Parliament.

Making a veiled attack on Kejriwal, PM Modi said while "some people are focused on building jacuzzi and showers", the BJP-led government is working to provide tap water to every home in the country.

He also took "AAPda" jibe at the Aam Aadmi Party and "Sheeshmahal" swipe at Kejriwal. His remarks came a day ahead of assembly polls in Delhi in which the BJP is seeking to oust AAP government from power. BJP has accused Kejriwal of corruption and "luxurious renovation" of his official residence when he was Chief Minister.

PM Modi said his government has not given false slogans to the poor, but true development. He said the government has worked for all sections of society and believes in ensuring resources are spent towards public welfare. "Our Government is proud of the middle class and will always support it," he said.

PM Modi took repeated digs at Rahul Gandhi, who is the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, over his speech yesterday.

He also took a dig at Congress over dynastic politics and referred to three members of the Nehru-Gandhi family being in Parliament. Rahul Gandhi has been repeatedly talking of the caste census.

"For some people, speaking about caste is fashion. For the last 30 years, OBC MPs have been demanding that OBC Commission be granted Constitutional status. Those who see a benefit in casteism today did not think of the OBC community back then. We granted Constititutiobal status to the OBC Commission. SC, ST and OBC get more opportunities in every sector - we have worked very strongly towards this. I pose an important question to the citizens through this House - have there even been three MPs simultaneously from the same family of SC community? I also ask, tell me if there ever were three MPs simultaneously from the same family belonging to the ST community...There is a vast difference between their words and actions," PM Modi said.

"Our Government has worked to create maximum opportunities for people from SC, ST and OBC Communities. Our commitment to the Constitution motivates us to make strong and pro-people decisions," he added. Taking a jibe at Rahul Gandhi over his remarks on foreign policy, PM Modi in a veiled attack against the Leader of Opposition said that "some" people speak on foreign policy even if it causes harm to the country. He added that some think they won't appear mature if they don't speak on foreign policy.

"A few people think they don't appear mature if they don't speak on foreign policy. They think that they should definitely speak on foreign policy, even if it causes harm to the country," PM Modi said.

He recommended a book 'JFK's Forgotten Crisis' on foreign policy, which mentions the conversations between former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and then US President John F Kennedy. The Prime Minister said that this book must be read by those who have a genuine interest in the subject.

"I would like to tell such people - if they have a real interest in the subject of foreign policy, if they want to understand it and want to do something while going ahead, they should definitely read a book, 'JFK's Forgotten Crisis'. This has been written by a renowned foreign policy scholar, where important instances have been mentioned including the conversations between India's first Prime Minister Pandit Nehru and John F Kennedy," PM Modi said.

The Prime Minister said that this book reveals the happenings in the name of foreign policy when the country was facing several challenges.

"When the country was facing several challenges, what was being done in the name of foreign policy at that time has been brought out through this book. This is why I will say that this book should be read," PM Modi.

Taking another jibe at Rahul over his remarks on the President's address, PM Modi said people who resort to "photo sessions" at the homes of the poor will find the discussion in Parliament "boring" about such deprived people.

"Those who get photo sessions done at the huts of poor people find talk on them boring," the PM said.

"Our government has given tap water connections to 12 crore homes. We have worked so much for the welfare of the poor, and this is why the President also mentioned it in her speech. If we have responsibility, then we cannot just identify the problem and leave it at that, we need to focus on finding solutions too," PM Modi said.

In another jibe at Rahul Gandhi, PM Modi said "those who carry a copy of the Constitution in their pockets can't understand its importance."

"It is unfortunate that today some people are speaking the language of urban Naxals openly, challenging the Indian state and declaring a fight against it. Those who speak this language neither understand the Constitution nor the unity of the nation," he said.

The Prime Minister said that for seven decades, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh were deprived of their constitutional rights. "This was an injustice not only to the Constitution but also to the people of these regions...We live by the spirit of the Constitution, and that is why we make strong decisions. Our Constitution does not give the right to discriminate. Those who live with the Constitution in their pockets do not know what kind of difficulties you forced Muslim women to live in..."

He also took a swipe at Congress over remarks of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

"We had a PM, he wanted to be called Mr Clean, he understood the problem. He said if Rs1 leaves Delhi then only 15 paisa reaches the poor. Only one party ruled in states and the centre. This was pure loot, a very big 'haath safai'." the PM said. Our model is clear, Janata ka paisa, Janta ke liye (the public's money is for the public itself)," the Prime Minister said.

Contrasting it with the efforts of the current government, he mentioned the government of India's initiative, the "JAM Trinity," which links Jan Dhan accounts, Aadhar cards, and Mobile numbers to give direct benefit transfers to people.

"We started giving DBT, Direct Benefit Transfer. We gave Rs 40 lakh crore in the bank accounts of people. But look at the previous governments, how it was run," PM Modi said.

"There was one PM who used to continuously speak about the 21st century...at that time RK Laxman made a very interesting cartoon....that cartoon was a joke at that time, but later it became the truth...that cartoon was an example of how that PM's talks were 'hawa hawai' and disconnected from reality... we are almost 40-50 years late...Works that should have been done 40-50 years earlier were done now. That's why when the public gave us a chance to work we focused on the development of the youth and nation building," PM Modi said.

As the Opposition raised slogans and shouted during his speech, the PM hit back and said, "jabh zyada bukhar chadh jata hain tabh aadmi bahut bolta hain (people talk too much when they are disappointed)."

"To make sure that there is no injustice done to the innocent, we did not care for political gains and losses and removed the names of 10 crore such frauds and started the initiative to take the schemes to genuine beneficiaries," he said.

"Those who were not even Indians, not even part of this country, took advantage of the Indian funds. Without caring about political benefits or anything, we removed 10 crore such frauds and gave them to real beneficiaries after looking for them. When the frauds were removed, then around Rs 3 lakh crore were saved from the wrong hands. I am not naming whose hands they were, but they were wrong hands," he added.

PM Modi said according to a WHO report, due to the availability of pure water from the tap, an average of Rs 40,000 has been saved by the families which were spending on other diseases.

"There are many such schemes which have helped in saving the expenses of the common man...When power becomes service, nation-building happens...When power becomes an inheritance, democracy ends...We follow the spirit of the Constitution, we do not indulge in poisonous politics...We give utmost importance to the unity of the country and hence we are building the statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the 'Statue of Unity'. It is the tallest statue in the world," he said.

He also spoke about India's efforts at harnessing use of AI.

"For me, there is not single AI, there is double AI, which is the double strength of India. An AI-Artificial Intelligence and the second AI is - Aspirational India. We have opened up the nuclear energy sector, and its long-term positive impacts and results will be visible for the country in the future...We have established 10,000 tinkering labs in schools, and today, children from these labs are surprising everyone with their robotics innovations. In this budget, provisions have been made for 50,000 new tinkering labs to further enhance innovation and creativity among students...India is the country for whose AI mission the world is hopeful," he said. .

PM Modi made a veiled attack on former Congress president Sonia Gandhi over her remarks following President Droupadi Murmu's speech in Parliament and said a woman President "is being humiliated".

He said remarks had been made against a woman President who has risen to the high office from humble background.

"A woman President, daughter of a poor family, if you cannot respect her, your wish but what all is being said to insult her. I can understand the political frustration. But what is the reason why the President is being insulted? What is the reason...Today, India is moving ahead leaving this kind of distorted mentality and taking the mantra of women-led development forward," PM Modi said.

"If half of the population gets the full opportunity, then India can move ahead at twice the speed. And this belief of mine has become stronger after working in the field for several years," he added.

On January 31, reacting to President Droupadi Murmu's address at the joint session of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, Sonia Gandhi said that the President was "getting very tired by the end" and could hardly speak.

"The President was getting very tired by the end...She could hardly speak, poor thing," Sonia Gandhi told reporters.

Rashtrapati Bhavan refuted the claims of Sonia Gandhi, without mentioning her name, but said that such remarks were "unacceptable" and "clearly hurt the dignity of the high office."

The Rashtrapati Bhavan also clarified that President Droupadi Murmu was "not tired at any point", adding that the President believes speaking up for the marginalized communities, for women and farmers can "never be tiring".

In his speech, PM Modi emphasised the benefits of the 'Lakhpati-didi' scheme of the government.

"President also mentioned the Lakhpati didi scheme. After our new government was formed for the third time, and since we have pushed this scheme, 1.25 crore women have become lakhpati didis. Our aim is to make 3 crore Lakhpati didis," he added.

Speaking about the middle class, PM Modi said that there were multiple 'bombs' and 'bullets' hurled at the middle class, which were then subsequently "healed" by the BJP-led government after 2014, in a reference to the new income tax introduced in by the Finance Ministry.

"In the last 10 years, we have enhanced savings of the middle class by reducing Income Tax. Before 2014, such 'bombs' were hurled and 'bullets' were shot, that it affected the lives of people. We gradually healed those wounds and moved forward," the PM said.

"We have been working continuously by keeping the future of youth in mind. But there are a few parties that are deceiving the youth. They promise allowances at the time of elections but do not fulfill those promises. These parties are 'aapda' on the future of youth. In Haryana, the country has seen how we work. We promised jobs and as soon as the government was formed, youth got jobs," he added.

In the new Income Tax regime, the salaried class will pay nil income tax up to Rs 12.75 lakh. The PM compared it to the income tax exemption of Rs 2 lakh in 2013-14.

"In 2013-2014 tax exemption was only on Rs 2 Lakh income. Today there is an Income tax exemption on Rs 12 lakh income...We healed wounds and today we have applied bandages too. If we add the Rs 75,000 standard deduction, after 1st April, salaried class in the country will not have to pay any tax on income up to Rs 12.75 Lakh," the PM added.

He also referred to the BJP's victory in the Haryana polls and to the sweep of the ruling Mahayuti alliance in Maharashtra polls.

"We have been working continuously by keeping the future of youth in mind. But there are a few parties that are deceiving the youth. They promise allowances at the time of elections but do not fulfill those promises. These parties are 'aapda' on the future of youth. In Haryana, the country has seen how we work. We promised jobs and as soon as the government was formed, youth got jobs. As a result of what we do, we registered a grand victory in Haryana for the third time. In Maharashtra too, we had historic results and we did this with the blessings of people," he said.

PM Modi said the President spoke about building trust among people regarding the coming 25 years.

"We are in 2025. In a way, 25 per cent of the 21st century has gone by. Only time will decide what happened after independence in the 20th century and the first 25 years of the 21st century. But if we minutely study the President's Address, it is clear that she spoke about building trust among people regarding the coming 25 years and Viksit Bharat. Her Address strengthens the resolve of Viksit Bharat, builds new confidence and inspires the common people," he said.

"I am very fortunate that the people of the country have given me the opportunity for the 14th time to reply to Motion of Thanks on President's Address. So, I respectfully express gratitude to the people," he added.

Several members participated in the debate on the motion of thanks that started on Monday.

The House later adopted the motion of thanks to the President's address. (ANI)