Addressing House, heaps praise on govt on triple talaq, surgical strikes

NEW DELHI(TIP): Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, President Ram Nath Kovind, on January 31,  defended the BJP government’s controversial decisions, from Rafale jet purchase and demonetization to GST implementation, saying the government had commenced its journey towards building a “New India”.

His hour-long Address to the joint sitting of Parliament marked the start of Budget Session with PM Narendra Modi, former PM Manmohan Singh, BJP chief Amit Shah and Congress president Rahul Gandhi in attendance. Gandhi debuted in the front rows.

 The President used the occasion to hail demonetization as “a defining moment in the government’s war on corruption and black money”; term the GST a “means to establish an honest system of trade”; call surgical strikes India’s “new policy and strategy”; and laud Rafale jets as ultra-modern aircraft that will strengthen India’s strike capability.

The speech also lavished praises on government’s recent legislative moves, including the controversial Citizenship Amendment Bill that the Opposition is questioning, Triple Talaq Bill, death penalty for aggravated child sexual assault and the new law on 10 per cent quota for General Category poor in education and public jobs. The Address drew thunderous applause from the ruling MPs when the President mentioned Rafale jet induction into the IAF and surgical strikes by the Army.

On both occasions Opposition leaders Rahul Gandhi, Manmohan Singh and Ghulam Nabi Azad sat unamused as the Congress continues to question the government over Rafale fighter jets deal, demonetization and  GST.

The President said: “The (demonetization) decision struck at the very root of parallel economy thriving on black money and the money outside the formal system was brought within the ambit of nation’s economy… and broke the back of the forces destabilizing the country and the systems sustaining the flow of black money.”

Listing other achievements of the government, including women-centric schemes like Mudra loan, Swachh Bharat and Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana besides Ayushman Bharat for cashless medical care, Kovind said the “new India” vowed by the BJP-led NDA government had no place for “imperfect, corrupt and inertia-ridden systems”.

On Rafale fighter jets purchase, he said, “My government believes that neglecting the country’s defense needs even for a moment is detrimental to the present and future of the country… after a gap of many decades, the Indian Air Force is preparing to welcome, in the coming months, its new generation ultra-modern fighter aircraft Rafale and strengthen its strike capability.”

Hailing surgical strikes, the President said, “Through the surgical strike on cross-border terror posts, India has shown its new policy and strategy.” The President also listed the Central Government’s flagship plans, including doubling farmers’ incomes and housing for all by 2022 as he wished the best to first time voters of the 2019 General Election before delineating contours of government’s “New India”.

The Budget Session will conclude on February 13.

(Source: Tribune India)