Delhi: A day after Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi took on the BJP-led NDA government in Parliament, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday reached out to the Opposition, saying he needs their support for "improvement" in his government.
However, at the same time the PM attacked the Congress over disruptions in Parliament while skipping the raging issues like JNU and Dalit student's suicide.
Modi, speaking in the Lok Sabha, used wit and barbs as he responded to the attack by Congress over various initiatives of his government, including 'Make in India' and MNREGA.
Reacting to PM Modi's speech Rahul said, “You heard me, you heard the PM, you know better,” as per ANI.
Slamming the Congress for disrupting Parliament and stalling bills, the PM said today that the main main Opposition party was doing so because of "inferiority complex" of its top leaders. He also invoked the statements made by Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and first President Rajendra Prasad by reading out their statements against stalling of legislative business.
However, in his 75-minute speech, PM Modi, however, did not respond to the specific issues raised by Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders, like his visit to Pakistan, black money, JNU and Dalit student Rohith Vemula's suicide.
Yesterday, Rahul had singularly targeted PM Modi as he led the Opposition attack on government in Lok Sabha, saying a "fair and lovely" scheme had been brought to launder black money and had slammed it over JNU and Dalit student Rohith Vemula issue besides the Pakistan policy.
In acerbic remarks on Modi's style of functioning, the Congress VP, while participating in the Motion of Thanks to the President's Address, had accused him of not listening to anyone's opinion including that of his ministers and MPs.
He had also ridiculed PM Modi's ambitious 'Make in India' programme, saying the Prime Minister has "created a 'babbar sher' (Asiatic Lion)" in which "clock and wheels are seen moving" and questioned how many jobs have been created.
Gandhi, while attacking BJP, said, "You have been taught by your teachers in the RSS that there is one truth in the universe - your own and nobody else's opinion matters."
Focussing his attack on Modi, he said, "The Prime Minister cannot run the country with his opinion alone. The country is not PM and PM is not the country."
(With PTI inputs)
