How RSS and Hindu Mahasabha Contributed to Making the Constitution: A Raja to BJP
News Mania Desk / Piyal Chatterjee / 14th December 2024
“Democracy alone was assaulted during MISA, but in your regime, entire six elements (spelt out in the Kesavananda Bharati case), namely democracy, secularism, rule of law, equality, federalism, judicial impartiality, everything has gone,” Raja said.
When Union minister Pralhad Joshi pointed out that DMK founder M Karunanidhi was also arrested during Emergency, Raja countered, saying his party does have grievances with the Congress, but is sitting with it to uphold the Constitution.
“We know the pain. Do not teach us lessons. In spite of that we are sitting here. Why? We have been injured, our party has been assaulted, but we think, we believe in the Constitution, nationality and the country is above everything for all of us. That is why we are sitting with the Congress,” Raja said.
The senior DMK leader said the Congress was a “silent spectator” when he and his party colleague, K Kanimozhi, were put in jail in the 2G case. “When we were arrested, the Congress was in power. We never begged. When we were acquitted, you were in power. We never begged. We stand for what we are,” Raja said.
“I do not think (about) which side we are, but the cause we are standing here (opposition benches) for, that is the problem,” he added.
Certain remarks made by Raja triggered an uproar in the House and were objected to by Joshi and BJP member Nishikant Dubey. BJP member Jagadambika Pal, who was in the chair, said the remarks in question will not be part of parliamentary records.
DMK chief A Raja criticized the BJP on Saturday, asserting that the governing party would have altered the Constitution if the terms “secular” and “socialist” had not been incorporated into the Preamble during the Emergency. While engaging in a debate regarding the Constitution in the Lok Sabha, Raja challenged the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to clarify the role of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Hindu Mahasabha in the formulation of the Constitution.
The ex-Union minister stated that democracy was solely under attack when the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) was enacted during the Emergency; however, under the BJP-led administration, the fundamental framework of the Constitution, established by the Supreme Court in the Kesavananda Bharati case, is being threatened. “We’ve been receiving messages from the opposition indicating that the Constitution is at risk….” “I would urge Congress to consider the year 2013,” Devarayalu remarked.
He stated that the Andhra Pradesh Assembly turned down a proposal to divide the state, yet the Bill was presented in Parliament. He stated that the Parliament members from the southern state were quickly removed from the House when the Bill was approved. The TDP leader also mentioned that the Congress had removed the Andhra Pradesh government led by Chief Minister N T Rama Rao in 1984.
Devarayalu urged that the government alter the Constitution to allow municipal elections as part of the proposed “one nation, one election” project. He also advocated for rebranding the “right to education” as the “right to quality education,” citing students’ lack of reading and writing skills. Devarayalu also requested that the government establish a schedule for governors to grant assent to measures approved by state assemblies.
