Congress slams govt after only 1 out of 4 nominees named in diplomatic delegations
New Delhi (PTI): With just one of its four nominated leaders being accommodated in the diplomatic outreach delegations, the Congress on Saturday said it proves the "complete insincerity" of the Narendra Modi government and shows the "cheap political games" it plays on serious national issues.
The opposition party, however, said the four eminent Congress MPs/leaders who have been included at the instance of the Modi government will go with the delegations and make their contributions.
The Congress, earlier on Saturday, said it was asked by the government to submit the names of four MPs for the all-party delegations to be sent abroad to explain India's stance on terrorism from Pakistan. It nominated Anand Sharma, Gaurav Gogoi, Syed Naseer Hussain, and Amrinder Singh Raja Warring.
Of the four, only Sharma has been included in the seven delegations that will be visiting various countries.
Four Congress leaders -- Shashi Tharoor, Manish Tewari, Amar Singh and Salman Khurshid -- who were not part of the list forwarded by the Congress have been included in the delegations by the government.
Fifty-one political leaders, parliamentarians and former ministers cutting across party lines will be part of the seven delegations travelling to world capitals to put across India's resolve to tackle terrorism against the backdrop of Operation Sindoor.
Congress general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh said, "On May 16th morning, the Modi government asked for four names of Congress MPs/leaders to represent the Congress in the delegations being sent abroad to explain India's stance on terrorism from Pakistan."
These four names were conveyed in writing by the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, to the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Kiren Rijiju, by 12 noon on May 16, Ramesh said in a statement.
"Very late tonight (May 17th), the full list of members of all delegations has been officially released. Most regrettably, only one of the four names suggested by the INC leadership has been included," he said.
"This proves the complete insincerity of the Modi government and shows the cheap political games it always plays on serious national issues," Ramesh said.
The four eminent Congress MPs/leaders who have been included at the instance of the Modi government will, of course, go with the delegations and make their contributions, he said.
"The Congress will not stoop to the pathetic level of the PM and the BJP. It will always uphold the finest traditions of Parliamentary democracy and not play partisan politics on national security issues, like the BJP does," Ramesh said.
The Congress wishes the delegations all the very best, he added.
Ramesh said these delegations should not, however, divert attention from the Congress' demands to have all-party meetings chaired by Modi and for a special session of Parliament to reiterate the resolution adopted on February 22, 1994, while also taking note of developments thereafter.
The seven delegations led by Baijayant Panda, Ravi Shankar Prasad (both BJP), Sanjay Kumar Jha (JDU), Shrikant Shinde (Shiv Sena), Shashi Tharoor (Congress), Kanimozhi (DMK) and Supriya Sule (NCP-SP) will visit a total of 32 countries and the EU headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.
Each delegation comprises seven or eight political leaders and is assisted by former diplomats.
Of the 51 political leaders, 31 are part of the ruling NDA, while the remaining 20 are from the non-NDA parties.
"One mission. One message. One Bharat. Seven All-Party Delegations will soon engage key nations under #OperationSindoor, reflecting our collective resolve against terrorism," Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said in a post on X.
The delegations include former Union Ministers Ghulam Nabi Azad, M J Akbar, Anand Sharma, V Muraleedharan, Salman Khurshid, S S Ahluwalia, who are not members of parliament at present.
The selection of Tharoor to head one of the delegations was frowned upon by the Congress, which accused the government of playing politics with a "mischievous" mindset.
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Illegally stored gas cylinders seized
Thane (PTI): Authorities have seized illegally stored 1,839 gas cylinders and seven vehicles worth over Rs 67 lakh in the Dombivli MIDC area of Thane district, officials said on Saturday.
A special vigilance team of the Mumbai Rationing Department detected an illegal storage of domestic and commercial LPG cylinders in Phase-2 of Dombivli (East).
Cylinders belonging to multiple gas agencies were found stockpiled in closed vehicles, unauthorised warehouses, and open sheds without mandatory permissions from the Explosives Department, Fire Department, or oil companies, according to an official release.
