NEW DELHI: Home minister Amit Shah on Wednesday flung a challenge at the opposition for a comprehensive debate over police action during the anti-NEET protests in Delhi on July 20, saying he was ready for a 24-hour-long debate in Parliament at an hour’s notice over their charge of police excesses against protesting students. He said govt had nothing to hide over an issue his rivals have used to attack him.“If they give their consent for discussion to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla at 2 pm, a debate can begin at 3 pm and go on till 3 pm the next day. I am ready to answer any question. But they (opposition) do not want debate to take place in Parliament. Let the people decide who is running away,” he told the media a day before the end of the monsoon session, which has been marred by the opposition’s disruptions over a host of issues. Soon after, parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju said govt could even push for the session’s extension if the opposition wants.BJP accuses Rahul of ‘anti-democracy, anarchic’ mindsetShah said while the opposition had initially demanded his statement, govt had gone beyond it by agreeing to an extensive debate followed by his reply so that people could decide who was right and who was wrong.Amit Shah’s aggressive counter was seconded by a host of senior BJP functionaries, with party president Nitin Nabin saying the conduct of Rahul and the entire opposition was reflective of their “anarchic and anti-democracy” mindset. “The entire session is about to be over but they did not agree to a serious discussion over any issue,” he said, accusing them of running away after govt’s offer of a debate.With INDIA bloc MPs frequently accusing him of “running away” from Parliament, Shah hit back and said he was regularly in his chamber in the House. When the opposition was not letting the House function, what was the point of him going there, he asked.
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Expressing anguish at his opponents’ jibes like “lapata” (missing) and “bhagora” (fugitive) for him, Shah said these terms were being used only recently in parliamentary discourse.The minister later wrote to the Speaker, urging him to reach out to the opposition so that a discussion could begin. “You can allot as much time you think appropriate with mutual agreement. I want to participate in the discussion and I’m ready to answer every question of the opposition,” he said, adding that a solution to any issue in democracy emerged from dialogue and discussion.Congress had normalised disruption in Parliament, he said, adding a party which governed India for decades had fallen to such a low that it did not want discussion in the House.
