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After Opposition MPs walked out of the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's absence, Union Minister Ramdas Athawale said there was no rule that only the Prime Minister must reply.
Athawale said Union Home Minister Amit Shah, being a senior minister, gave a detailed response in the House on Operation Sindoor. Speaking to ANI, Ramdas Athawale said, "...Today, Union Home Minister Amit Shah responded in the Rajya Sabha, and the opposition parties were saying that the Prime Minister should have responded... According to the rules, any minister can respond, and Amit Shah is a senior minister, and he has also shed light on many issues in detail..." Opposition MPs led by Mallikarjun Kharge demanded that the Prime Minister come to the Upper House and brief them on Operation Sindoor as he did on Tuesday in the Lok Sabha. Kharge said that PM Modi should have come to the House, as many of the Opposition's questions were directly related to him. "It was already the demand of the members of this House that, after a 16-hour-long discussion, the Prime Minister should come here and present his views, especially since many of our questions are directly related to him. I am not saying that you (Amit Shah) are not capable of responding, but if the Prime Minister is present and still doesn't come to this House, then it is an insult to the House. It is not right to insult the House," the Rajya Sabha LoP Kharge said. Replying to this, Deputy Chairman of the House, Harivansh said, "Mr Kharge, I would like to inform you that I have already explained that any minister from the government side can respond, this is the ruling. You cannot force anyone." Reacting to this, Amit Shah said that Mallikarjun Kharge is raising this point, who is not allowed by his own party to speak on important matters. "Mr Kharge is raising this issue, even though his own party (Congress) doesn't allow him to speak on important matters," Shah said. The Rajya Sabha LoP again stood up and said to the Deputy Chairman, "You interrupt on every point." The Opposition MPs then staged a walkout from the House. (ANI)
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