FM Sitharaman in Rajya Sabha: Congress Altered Constitution for the Powerful

New Delhi, Dec 16 (NationPress) Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, opened the discussion on the Constitution in the Rajya Sabha on Monday, asserting that the Congress altered the Constitution to shield the powerful.

Recalling an event from 1949, she stated, "Majrooh Sultanpuri and Balraj Sahni were imprisoned in 1949. What was the cause? During a gathering for mill workers, Majrooh Sultanpuri recited a poem that criticized Jawaharlal Nehru, leading to his incarceration. He declined to apologize, resulting in his imprisonment alongside the well-known actor Balraj Sahni at that time."

"That exemplifies the level of intolerance," she remarked.

The Finance Minister also reproached the Congress for holding the Constitution, participating in votes, and discussing freedom of speech, while simultaneously expressing that "there is a sense of fear in the nation," as she stated.

"Did Majrooh Sultanpuri experience it? Did Balraj Sahni? Yet, history seems to repeat when it pertains to the Congress party," she remarked.

In 1988, the book 'Satanic Verses' was banned, following earlier bans on Nehru's biography and the film 'Kissa Kursi Ka'. "This series of suppressing press freedom began before 1949, continued from 1949-50, and still persists," added Sitharaman.

She further asserted that the judiciary was disrespected. "A constitutional amendment was enacted to overturn the ruling in the Indira Gandhi vs. Raj Narain case, where the Allahabad High Court annulled Indira Gandhi’s election."

"A case was ongoing in court, yet there was urgency — fearing the court's decision against her. The 39th Amendment Act was enacted, introducing Article 392(A)," she stated.

She accused late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi of taking actions contrary to the court, "To preserve her position, the amendment was enacted before the court's ruling, exploiting the law for personal benefit."

"Opposing the court, which delivers justice for societal improvement, there was the Shah Bano Begum case. The Supreme Court awarded alimony to the woman for justice, yet the Congress, in 1986, enacted a law denying Muslim women their alimony rights," she stated, adding that the Congress had no genuine intention of social or economic benefit when amending laws.

Discussing the Emergency, Sitharaman remarked, "During the Emergency, all procedures were grossly violated. The Lok Sabha term was extended without valid reasoning. In that extended term, while the entire Opposition was incarcerated, a constitutional amendment was made. Was this process legitimate? It was utterly invalid."

"Only five members opposed the Bill in the Lok Sabha, and none in the Rajya Sabha opposed it. Yet, the amendment, modifying the Preamble, occurred," she remarked.

These amendments were not intended to fortify democracy, according to the Finance Minister, but rather to protect the powerful.

She also referenced B.R. Ambedkar, who opposed including the term "socialism" in the Constitution: "I do not see, therefore, why to bind people to exist in a specific form."

"As many as 21 MPs were imprisoned under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA). There are leaders who named their children after MISA to remind them of those dark times, and today, they would not hesitate to ally with them," she added.

She noted that collectively, these actions altered the qualitative nature of the Constitution from its original form as adopted on November 26, 1949.