NEET, Pro-Tem Speaker, Constitution: Opposition Looks at Cornering Govt in Parliament as PM Modi, Others Take Oath

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Council of Ministers, along with the newly-elected MPs, took oath on Monday as the first session of Parliament after Lok Sabha Elections 2024 began. BJP MP Bhartruhari Mahtab was first administered the oath as the Pro-Tem Speaker by President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhavan amid protests by the Opposition.

The Opposition INDIA bloc is looking to corner the Modi government over several issues, including the NEET-UG 2024 paper leak mess. The Opposition is also looking to attack the government over “disregard to Constitution” after the ruling NDA nominated Mahtab as the Pro-Tem Speaker.

Here are top updates on the Parliament session:

• About 280 newly-elected MPs will be taking oath today. The remaining 260 MPs will take oath on Tuesday, June 25.
• The Opposition hit out at the Modi government over the appointment of Bhartruhari Mahtab as the Pro-Tem Speaker. INDIA bloc leaders including Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, protested in Parliament premises with copies of the Constitution. “The ruling party hasn’t forgotten their haughtiness. We can see that they are ignoring the key subjects of the country. The whole Dalit community in India could witness a historic seen if K Suresh were appointed as Pro-tem Speaker. Today, BJP has not just neglected Congress, INDIA alliance and K Suresh but the whole Dalit community,” said Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi.
• Ahead of the Parliament session, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that his government will look forward to “speed up decisions by taking everyone together.” “In the last 10 years, we have always tried to implement a tradition because we believe that a majority is required to run the government but to run the country a consensus is of utmost importance. So, it will be our constant efforts to serve Maa Bharti and fulfill the aspirations and ambitions of the 140 crore people, with everyone’s consent and by taking everyone together. We want to go ahead and speed up decisions by taking everyone together, by maintaining the sanctity of the Constitution,” PM Modi said.
• PM Modi also cited the 1975 Emergency, calling it a “blot on India’s democracy”. “Tomorrow is 25th June. 25th June marks 50 years of the blot that was put on the democracy of India. The new generation of India will never forget that the Constitution of India was completely rejected, every part of the Constitution was torn to pieces, the country was turned into a prison, democracy was completely suppressed…While protecting our Constitution, while protecting the democracy of India, the democratic traditions, the countrymen will take a resolution that no one will dare to do such a thing in India again which was done 50 years ago. We will take a resolution of a vibrant democracy. We will take a resolution to fulfil the dreams of the common people as per the directions of the Constitution of India,” PM Modi said.
• The Opposition, meanwhile, is looking at cornering the government over the NEET-UG 2024 issue. JMM (Jharkhand Mukti Morcha) MP Mahua Maji said, “The issue of NEET is a crucial issue of the nation… Middle-class people are not able to afford expensive private medical colleges. So, they prepare for the government colleges. Then, there are such big scams in the government exams… They (the central government) have cancelled the UGC NET exam too…The state government is not responsible for it. The central government is responsible for the irregularities. It is a failure of the Education department.”
• Congress MP Renuka Chowdhury also said that the party will raise the NEET issue. “It is our responsibility to raise the NEET issue. Lakhs of children’s hard work and their parents’ money were wasted. They neither can move forward nor step back. We were elected to raise the issues of people…they (central govt) can’t give jobs and now they are not letting them (youth) get jobs either,” the Congress MP said.
• Meanwhile, speaking on the INDIA bloc’s protest in Parliament today, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi said, “The attack that the PM and Amit Shah are launching on the Constitution is not acceptable to us, we will not let this happen. So, we held the Constitution while taking the oath…Our message is going across, no power can touch the Constitution of India.”