-, Mar 19, 2023, India Blooms News Service
New Delhi: Amid criticism for his comments on democracy in India at a London event, Rahul Gandhi tried to clarify his remarks at a Parliamentary panel meeting on Saturday. He spoke at length that he only raised questions on Indias democracy and cannot be labelled an anti-national for that and added that he did not ask any other country to intervene, media reports said.
He also told the leaders present at the meeting that he believes that it is an internal matter and they would solve the issue.
The meeting of the Parliamentary Consultative Committee was chaired by Foreign Affairs minister S Jaishankar. It was aimed at discussing Indias G20 presidency.
Chaired the Parliamentary Consultative Committee for External Affairs on Indias G20 Presidency.
Thank members for their active participation. pic.twitter.com/3DW5HrR5zq
Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) March 18, 2023
At the start of the meeting, the Foreign Affairs minister gave a detailed presentation on the G20 presidency to the committee members.
Rahul Gandhi did not speak at the opening round. He, however, responded after an MP said some political leaders tried to get attention by speaking against democracy in India on foreign lands.
Rahul Gandhis counter remarks were opposed by BJP MPs attending the meeting, who said it wasnt the right platform to speak on the matter.
During the meeting, some other MPs supported the BJP MPs, while some opposition MPs supported Gandhis right to clarify or defend himself, as there was an indirect reference made during the meeting to his comments made during his visit to London.
Some BJP MPs also said without taking names that the emergency was the biggest blot on Indias democracy, and some individuals were attempting to deflect attention away from Indias G20 presidency.
Amid the heated exchanges, Jaishankar intervened and stopped Rahul Gandhi from responding to the statements and asked all the leaders to discuss such matters in Parliament instead. Jaishankar specifically requested Gandhi to limit his comments to the committees topic and avoid discussing political subjects.