On Board Air India One: Prime Miinister Manmohan Singh Tuesday said he would not quit over the perceived undermining of his authority and that of his cabinet by Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, noting differences of viewpoints was “what a democracy is about”.
But he said that the “onslaught” of BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi needed to be met by “all secular forces” and “one will have to wait for some time before the people realise what they are up against”.
He also sought to put an end to mounting speculation that he may resign after the public trashing by Gandhi of a ordinance that sought to shield convicted lawmakers from disqualification, saying “there was no question of resigning.”
Manmohan Singh said he will try to “find out the reasons” why Rahul Gandhi had protested in “that way”.
Asked whether Gandhi should have raised the issue of ordinance while he was away in the US, the prime minister said: “Well I am not the master of what people say. It has happened, and as I said when I go back I will try to find out the reasons why it had to be done that way and how do we handle it.” To a question whether he was upset by the public denunciation of the ordinance passed by the cabinet last week, he said: “I think, I have been used to ups and downs and I don’t get easily upset.”
The prime minister was speaking to reporters on board his special aircraft while returning from his US visit. Gandhi, at a press conference, had rubbished the ordinance, saying that it was “complete nonsense” and should be “torn up and thrown away”.
The remark had created a political storm, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) saying that the prime minister should step down if he had any self-respect left.
The prime minister said the ordinance was discussed twice by the cabinet and also by the Congress core group, the party’s top decision-making body.
The ordinance was seen to be a way of saving Congress leader Rasheed Masood and strong ally Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Lalu Prasad ahead of their final court hearing in corruption cases. Both have been convicted.
Pranab Mukherjee had withheld his assent to the ordinance after the cabinet passed it Sep 24, a day before Manmohan Singh left for his five-day US visit. Mukherjee had summoned some union ministers over it. Asked whether the government was planning to junk the controversial ordinance, the prime minister said: “We will see which way the wind blows.” The cabinet is meeting Wednesday to discuss the ordinance. (IANS)