New Delhi: The citizenship of MoS Home Nisith Pramanik gave a big blow to the ongoing monsoon session of the Parliament. Trinamool Congress (TMC), the ruling party of West Bengal, raised the issue in both the Houses on Monday - during the first day of the session. The party MPs submitted a notice, created a ruckus and stopped PM Modi in
the middle of introducing his new ministers.
During a press briefing on the same day, TMC Rajya Sabha MP and senior party leader Derek O'Brien said, "A minister has to be the country's citizen, not the citizen of Bangladesh." The chaos continued until both the Houses adjourned till the afternoon.
In the last week, Congress MP from Assam and state Congress chief Ripun Bora also wrote a letter to the Prime Minister seeking an inquiry into Pramanik's place of birth and nationality. He is the youngest member of Modi's cabinet. "It's a matter of grave concern that a foreign national is an incumbent Union Minister," Bora mentioned in his letter.
The opposition parties, including Trinamool Congress, claimed that the incumbent government is in no mood to discuss important issues on which notices have been given including price hike of diesel, petrol, LPG and other commodities, demand to repeal farm laws, the decline in economic growth, restoration of MPLAD funds, vaccination status and the health infrastructure and government's preparedness to combat the COVID situation. They also alleged the weakening of the federal structure by the government.
To protest against the rise in fuel prices and other commodities, several TMC MPs cycled to the Parliament during the first day of the session. They raised slogans against the skyrocketing prices of petrol, diesel and LPG. The party MPs also claimed that the government is not abiding by laws and rules to run the Houses. It cancels the Business Advisory Committee's meetings without any reason.
Trinamool Congress has always been a volunteer in the coordination between the opposition parties, especially the non-NDA political parties.