NEW DELHI: Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Thursday termed the Waqf (Amendment) Bill as a “brazen assault” on the Constitution, saying it was part of the BJP’s strategy to keep society in a state of “permanent polarisation”.
Hours after the Lok Sabha passed the Waqf amendment bill, Gandhi said the bill was “bulldozed” through in the lower house.
Addressing party MPs at a meeting of the Congress Parliamentary Party in Samvidhan Sadan here, she also said that the One Nation, One Election Bill is another subversion of the Constitution and the party would strongly oppose it.
“Yesterday, the Wakf Amendment Bill, 2024 was passed in the Lok Sabha and today it is scheduled to come up in the Rajya Sabha. The bill was in effect bulldozed through. Our party’s position is clear. The Bill is a brazen assault on the Constitution itself. It is very much part of the BJP’s deliberate strategy to keep our society in a state of permanent polarization,” Gandhi said.
The Lok Sabha passed the Waqf (Amendment) Bill well past midnight after a 12-hour debate. The Bill was passed after all amendments moved by the opposition members were rejected by voice votes. It was passed after division of votes — 288 in favour and 232 against. The Bill will now come up in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday.
The former Congress president also said their plea for the immediate implementation of the women’s reservation bill passed by both Houses two years back continues to be wilfully ignored along with the other demand for one-third reservation for women belonging to scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and OBC communities.
“Whether it is education, civil rights and liberties, our federal structure or conduct of elections, the Modi government is dragging the country into an abyss where our Constitution will remain on paper and we know their intention is to demolish even that,” she charged.
“It is vital for all of us to continue to fight for what is right and just, to expose Modi government’s failing and intention to turn India into a surveillance state,” Gandhi told MPs at the meeting.
All party MPs, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, were present at the meeting.
PTI
Sonia Gandhi calls Waqf Bill ‘brazen assault’ on Constitution
