Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge condemned Prime Minister Narendra Modi for not “fulfilling his promise” and claimed that Harsh Vardhan, who resigned as Union health minister ahead of cabinet reshuffle earlier this month, was made a scapegoat.
In Rajya Sabha’s upper house the leader said, “PM Modi appealed to people to clang utensils, light candles. People trusted him and did all of it. He didn’t fulfil his promise but disappointed them. Instead of taking its blame, he made the health minister a scapegoat,” the Congress’ leader of the party in Rajya Sabha said in the Upper House. He further added, “Government asked people to wear masks and maintain social distancing. But what were they doing, during the elections in different states? You are breaking your own rules. They should be given credit for flouting Covid norms,”
The congress minister also made a direct comparison between the coronavirus lockdown and demonetisation, insisting that both were imposed overnight and the government was unprepared for it. “Lockdown was announced overnight, just like demonetisation. The government did not prepare for it. There were no trains for people to go back home. The livelihood of people was impacted. Government should be held accountable,” he continued.
The Congress leader also paid tribute to the Covid warriors and said, “I pay tribute to Covid warriors including doctors and paramedics. I salute people who helped others by running ‘oxygen langer’ in Delhi during the second wave of Covid-19. I also want to salute plasma donors, who came out in support,”
Rajya Sabha’s monsoon session proceedings were adjourned three times amid uproar by YSR Congress members demanding special status for Andhra Pradesh.
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