Rahul in hurry to unseat me: PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was at his barbed best on Friday. Just when it seemed that Rahul’s hug had eclipsed the happenings in Parliament, Modi came back firing on all cylinders.

Taking Congress president Rahul Gandhi head on, Modi said that the no-confidence motion against the government was not a test for him, but one for the Congress and its friends, hinting at the ragtag nature of the opposition unity.

The sentiment again found an echo towards the end of his speech when he threw a challenge to the opposition saying, “We will do everything for the people of the country. I once again ask them to bring another noconfidence motion in 2024.”

Earlier, Modi, in a point-bypoint rebuttal, took a dig at Rahul for his surprising walk across the aisle and hug, saying that it showed that the Congress chief was in a hurry to unseat him.

In a 90-minute reply to debate, he lampooned Rahul for trying to hoist himself as the Prime Minister and asserted that the Congress president does not have trust of the parties he is trying to cobble together for his own selfish goal, as he cannot accept anybody except himself as the PM.

Modi said he is in power because of the support of 125 crore people who put him in saddle in 2014 and who will never accept a ''Khichdi" government the Congress is promising.

He accused the Congress of misusing the no-confidence motion to create instability in the country and decried Sonia Gandhi, without naming her, for claiming who says the Opposition does not have the numbers. He claimed a similar false claim was made by her to create

confusion when Atal Behari Vajpayee became the PM. He said the Congress has been playing the same trick to assure support to various prime ministers and then pulling the rug from under their feet. It only believes in creating instability, if it is not in power.

On Rafalle aircraft, Modi wondered why the Congress was repeatedly misleading the nation, so much so that the governments of both the nations had to issue statements to contradict his claim.

He said the agreement was between two responsible governments and not with any private party. He also slammed Rahul for calling the surgical strike as a "jumla strike," which was an insult to the jawans fighting on the borders.

On Rahul challenging Modi to look him in the eye, Modi said he does not have the courage to do so as he is just a kaamdar. He also reeled out names of leaders who tried to look into the eyes of the Gandhis but were insulted and humiliated. Modi mocked Rahul even for his wink and said

The nation had seen quite a lot of eye movement during the day.

PM Modi countered Rahul’s attack on the Doklam issue by saying: "Sometimes we should not touch upon issues that are beyond us. We should not talk about things that we don't know."

Asserting that it was not a floor test of his government but an opportunity to list all the work done by his government, Modi said the discussion had only brought out the negative politics of the Congress and other parties.

"Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas" is the mantra with which his government had worked with and it would ensure his smooth victory in the 2019 election, he said, citing how various programmes have touched every section of the society, particularly the poor, the farmer, the Dalits and women.