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Tag: Manish Tewari

  • All bills passed after the admission of no-trust motion constitutionally suspect, says Manish Tewari

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Congress MP Manish Tewari on Sunday claimed that all bills passed after the no-confidence motion was admitted in the Lok Sabha are ‘constitutionally suspect’ and asserted that any substantive legislative business must succeed the outcome of the motion, not precede it.

    The former Union minister also said the 10-day period for scheduling a discussion on the no-confidence motion tabled in the Lok Sabha cannot be used to ‘steamroll’ bills.

    The Lok Sabha MP’s assertion comes as the bill to replace the Delhi services ordinance is set to come up in the House this week.

    READ MORE: Opposition ‘INDIA’, BRS move no-confidence motion against Modi government in Lok Sabha

    In an interview with PTI, Tewari said once the no-confidence motion has been tabled in the Lok Sabha, any legislation or material business brought before the HouseThe former Union Minister also said the 10-day period for scheduling a discussion on the no-confidence motion tabled in the Lok Sabha cannot be used to ‘steamroll’ Bills is completely in violation of morality, propriety and parliamentary conventions.

    He claimed the very legality of all the legislations which have been passed in the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha after the no-confidence motion was admitted would have to be examined by a court of law as to whether they were legally passed or not.

    “All legislative business transacted after the no-confidence motion was tabled is “constitutionally suspect”, he claimed.

    On the BJP comparing the 2018 no-confidence motion against the Narendra Modi government and the massive mandate it got in the 2019 elections with the current scenario, Tewari said, “If history repeats itself once, it is a tragedy and if it does so twice, it is a farce.”

    A no-confidence motion by the Congress on behalf of the opposition alliance INDIA against the government was admitted in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday amid concerted efforts by the anti-BJP bloc to force Prime Minister Narendra Modi to speak on the contentious Manipur issue in Parliament.

    Asked about the numbers not adding up for the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc for the no-confidence motion, Tewari said it was not a question of numbers but of morality.

    “What has happened in Manipur and what is continuing to happen there is absolutely reprehensible. There is a BJP government in the state, there is a BJP government at the Centre. Therefore, somebody needs to take responsibility,” Tewari told PTI.

    He said the opposition expected the prime minister to make a suo motu statement in both Houses of Parliament on the ‘extremely critical situation’ in Manipur and that statement would have been succeeded by a discussion.

    But, unfortunately, the prime minister chose to make a very ‘cursory remark’ just before the commencement of the Monsoon session.

    READ MORE: PM Modi breaks silence over ethnic violence in Manipur after video shows mob molesting women

    After that, adjournment motions tabled in both Houses of Parliament repeatedly were not admitted by the presiding officers, the Congress leader said.

    “Thus the joint opposition was left with no option but to bring this no-confidence motion to enforce the principle of morality, probity and accountability in public life which must be the sine qua non of any governance,” he asserted.

    Asked about the expectations from Prime Minister Modi’s response to the no-confidence motion, Tewari said the motion states that “this house expresses want of confidence in the council of ministers” and the reason for that want of confidence has publicly been articulated ‘ad nauseum’ for the past one week.

    “So under those circumstances, if the prime minister chooses not to respond to Manipur it would be a travesty,” the MP from Punjab’s Anandpur Sahib said.

    On the BJP’s contention that in the past instances of violence in the northeast, ministers have replied and not the prime minister, Tewari said the Modi government could have accepted adjournment motions submitted by opposition MPs.

    “We had been tabling adjournment motions every day. The government could have accepted the adjournment motions which can be replied to by a minister. The government chose not to accept them,” he said.

    “Under these circumstances, if the prime minister could speak outside Parliament and say that the developments in Manipur have made our heads hang in collective shame then what was the hesitation and diffidence in coming and addressing Parliament on the same issue,” Tewari argued.

    Asked whether the bill to replace the Delhi services ordinance should be brought after the no-confidence motion is deliberated and voted upon, Tewari said, “Even (the book by) MN Kaul and SL Shakdher, which I had quoted, is explicit that once the no-confidence motion is accepted by the Speaker, no other business should be given precedence.”

    Tewari recalled that in July 1966 when a no-confidence motion was brought against the government, the then minister for parliamentary affairs, Satyendra Narayan Sinha, had accepted the fact that once such a motion is before the House, no other material business should be transacted.

    Asked about the opposition’s insistence on discussing the no-confidence motion immediately despite the rules talking of a 10-day period for scheduling, Tewari said it was for the simple reason that when there is want of confidence in the council of ministers, what is the locus that the government to bring legislations and get them passed in the House.

    “Those 10 days are there because if the presiding officer in his wisdom wants to adjourn the House and take it up at a later point in time within 10 days, that flexibility has been given to the presiding officer to schedule the vote of confidence,” he said.

    It is not a period that can be utilised to ‘steamroll’ legislations or substantive policy matters through the House without any discussion, the Congress leader asserted.

    Asked whether the constituents of the INDIA alliance would take part in the debate if the bill to replace Delhi ordinance is taken up for consideration before the no-confidence motion or will they oppose its introduction and boycott it till the motion is taken up, Tewari said that would be a call which the INDIA alliance has to take.

    There is a general sense that the ordinance is a ‘Serious assault on federalism’, he said.

    “According to me, every legislation, important or unimportant, should succeed the outcome of a no-confidence motion and not precede it,” the Congress MP said.

    On disruption rather than debate becoming the norm, Tewari said while disruption is a legitimate parliamentary tactic, the responsibility of running Parliament rests squarely on the shoulders of the government.

    The doctrine of disruption being a legitimate parliamentary tactic was not coined by the Congress but by the BJP’s Arun Jaitely when he was the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, he said.

    NEW DELHI: Congress MP Manish Tewari on Sunday claimed that all bills passed after the no-confidence motion was admitted in the Lok Sabha are ‘constitutionally suspect’ and asserted that any substantive legislative business must succeed the outcome of the motion, not precede it.

    The former Union minister also said the 10-day period for scheduling a discussion on the no-confidence motion tabled in the Lok Sabha cannot be used to ‘steamroll’ bills.

    The Lok Sabha MP’s assertion comes as the bill to replace the Delhi services ordinance is set to come up in the House this week.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    READ MORE: Opposition ‘INDIA’, BRS move no-confidence motion against Modi government in Lok Sabha

    In an interview with PTI, Tewari said once the no-confidence motion has been tabled in the Lok Sabha, any legislation or material business brought before the HouseThe former Union Minister also said the 10-day period for scheduling a discussion on the no-confidence motion tabled in the Lok Sabha cannot be used to ‘steamroll’ Bills is completely in violation of morality, propriety and parliamentary conventions.

    He claimed the very legality of all the legislations which have been passed in the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha after the no-confidence motion was admitted would have to be examined by a court of law as to whether they were legally passed or not.

    “All legislative business transacted after the no-confidence motion was tabled is “constitutionally suspect”, he claimed.

    On the BJP comparing the 2018 no-confidence motion against the Narendra Modi government and the massive mandate it got in the 2019 elections with the current scenario, Tewari said, “If history repeats itself once, it is a tragedy and if it does so twice, it is a farce.”

    A no-confidence motion by the Congress on behalf of the opposition alliance INDIA against the government was admitted in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday amid concerted efforts by the anti-BJP bloc to force Prime Minister Narendra Modi to speak on the contentious Manipur issue in Parliament.

    Asked about the numbers not adding up for the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc for the no-confidence motion, Tewari said it was not a question of numbers but of morality.

    “What has happened in Manipur and what is continuing to happen there is absolutely reprehensible. There is a BJP government in the state, there is a BJP government at the Centre. Therefore, somebody needs to take responsibility,” Tewari told PTI.

    He said the opposition expected the prime minister to make a suo motu statement in both Houses of Parliament on the ‘extremely critical situation’ in Manipur and that statement would have been succeeded by a discussion.

    But, unfortunately, the prime minister chose to make a very ‘cursory remark’ just before the commencement of the Monsoon session.

    READ MORE: PM Modi breaks silence over ethnic violence in Manipur after video shows mob molesting women

    After that, adjournment motions tabled in both Houses of Parliament repeatedly were not admitted by the presiding officers, the Congress leader said.

    “Thus the joint opposition was left with no option but to bring this no-confidence motion to enforce the principle of morality, probity and accountability in public life which must be the sine qua non of any governance,” he asserted.

    Asked about the expectations from Prime Minister Modi’s response to the no-confidence motion, Tewari said the motion states that “this house expresses want of confidence in the council of ministers” and the reason for that want of confidence has publicly been articulated ‘ad nauseum’ for the past one week.

    “So under those circumstances, if the prime minister chooses not to respond to Manipur it would be a travesty,” the MP from Punjab’s Anandpur Sahib said.

    On the BJP’s contention that in the past instances of violence in the northeast, ministers have replied and not the prime minister, Tewari said the Modi government could have accepted adjournment motions submitted by opposition MPs.

    “We had been tabling adjournment motions every day. The government could have accepted the adjournment motions which can be replied to by a minister. The government chose not to accept them,” he said.

    “Under these circumstances, if the prime minister could speak outside Parliament and say that the developments in Manipur have made our heads hang in collective shame then what was the hesitation and diffidence in coming and addressing Parliament on the same issue,” Tewari argued.

    Asked whether the bill to replace the Delhi services ordinance should be brought after the no-confidence motion is deliberated and voted upon, Tewari said, “Even (the book by) MN Kaul and SL Shakdher, which I had quoted, is explicit that once the no-confidence motion is accepted by the Speaker, no other business should be given precedence.”

    Tewari recalled that in July 1966 when a no-confidence motion was brought against the government, the then minister for parliamentary affairs, Satyendra Narayan Sinha, had accepted the fact that once such a motion is before the House, no other material business should be transacted.

    Asked about the opposition’s insistence on discussing the no-confidence motion immediately despite the rules talking of a 10-day period for scheduling, Tewari said it was for the simple reason that when there is want of confidence in the council of ministers, what is the locus that the government to bring legislations and get them passed in the House.

    “Those 10 days are there because if the presiding officer in his wisdom wants to adjourn the House and take it up at a later point in time within 10 days, that flexibility has been given to the presiding officer to schedule the vote of confidence,” he said.

    It is not a period that can be utilised to ‘steamroll’ legislations or substantive policy matters through the House without any discussion, the Congress leader asserted.

    Asked whether the constituents of the INDIA alliance would take part in the debate if the bill to replace Delhi ordinance is taken up for consideration before the no-confidence motion or will they oppose its introduction and boycott it till the motion is taken up, Tewari said that would be a call which the INDIA alliance has to take.

    There is a general sense that the ordinance is a ‘Serious assault on federalism’, he said.

    “According to me, every legislation, important or unimportant, should succeed the outcome of a no-confidence motion and not precede it,” the Congress MP said.

    On disruption rather than debate becoming the norm, Tewari said while disruption is a legitimate parliamentary tactic, the responsibility of running Parliament rests squarely on the shoulders of the government.

    The doctrine of disruption being a legitimate parliamentary tactic was not coined by the Congress but by the BJP’s Arun Jaitely when he was the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, he said.

  • BJP govt’s decisions have hit 25 crore households, widened divide between rich and the poor: Congress

    While the number of billionaires in India increased from 100 to 142 in these years, the income of those in the lower strata has been decreasing day by day, Manish Tewari said.

  • ‘Adopt model of collective, inclusive leadership’: G-23 to Congress top brass as Sonia suggests changes

    By Express News Service

    NEW DELHI:  Amid fast-paced developments in the beleaguered  Congress on Wednesday, its G-23 rebels advised the party leadership that the only way forward is to adopt a model of collective and inclusive leadership and decision making at all levels.

    The statement was issued after a dinner meeting at veteran leader Ghulam Nabi Azad’s residence. 

    The G-23 meeting was earlier scheduled to be held at Kapil Sibal’s house but was shifted at the last minute as leaders like ex-Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda were not comfortable with his attack on the Gandhis.

    Sibal is currently in the eye of a storm as he said upfront that the Gandhis should let someone else head the Congress. 

    The G-23 statement also demanded that the party leadership initiate talks with like-minded forces to build a credible alternative ahead of the next Lok Sabha polls in 2024.

    “The next steps in this regard will be announced soon,” the statement jointly issued by 18 leaders said. 

    What was interesting about the gathering was the presence of Rajiv Gandhi loyalist Mani Shankar Aiyar. Other additions were Patiala MP Preneet Kaur and ex-Gujarat CM S S Vaghela. Old faces like Anand Sharma, Manish Tewari, Shashi Tharoor,  Prithviraj Chavan, Vivek Tankha, Raj Babbar, Akhilesh Prasad Singh and Sandeep Dikshit were also present. 

    The dissidents had thrown the door open to those who were not part of G-23 but shared concerns about the party’s future. In Parliament, Congress president Sonia Gandhi aggressively attacked social media giants for allegedly siding with the ruling BJP during the recent state elections.

    Later in the day, she appointed senior leaders to assess the situation and suggest organisational changes in all the five states where Congress was routed.

    A day earlier, she had sought the resignations of five PCC chiefs.

    The newly appointed leaders are Jairam Ramesh (for Manipur), Ajay Maken (Punjab), Rajani Patil (Goa), Jitendra Singh (UP) and Avinash Pandey (Uttarakhand). 

    The G-23 saw some more leaders joining the dinner meeting at Azad’s residence, which was convened to work out the grouping’s future strategy and discuss the Congress’s debacle in the just-concluded Assembly polls in five states.

    The meeting lasted for over four hours and all the leaders spoke about the strategy to be adopted.

    Sources said Azad also spoke to Congress president Sonia Gandhi and conveyed to her the feelings of the grouping while assuring her of their support in strengthening the organisation.

    Azad and Anand Sharma reposed faith in Gandhi’s leadership at the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting on Sunday.

    Incidentally, the grouping sidestepped the issue of leadership, after Kapil Sibal said Gandhi should step aside and pave the way for another leader.

    The leaders said they met to deliberate on the demoralising outcome of the recent poll results and the constant exodus of party leaders and workers.

    “We believe that the only way forward for the Congress is to adopt a model of collective and inclusive leadership and decision making at all levels.”

    “In order to oppose the BJP, it is necessary to strengthen the Congress party. We demand the Congress party to initiate dialogue with other like-minded forces to create a platform to pave the way for a credible alternative for 2024,” the joint statement of the G-23 said.

    The next steps in this regard will be announced soon, it added.

    Sources said the grouping had earlier planned a dinner at Sibal’s residence, but it was changed at the last minute.

    Among the leaders who attended the meeting were Sibal, Sharma, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Prithviraj Chavan, Manish Tewari, Shashi Tharoor, Vivek Tankha, Raj Babbar, Akhilesh Prasad Singh and Sandeep Dikshit.

    The ambit of the G-23 grouping widened this time as some more leaders — Patiala MP Preneet Kaur, former Gujarat chief minister Shankar Singh Vaghela, former Punjab chief minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, former Union minister Mani Shankar Aiyar, former Rajya Sabha deputy chairman PJ Kurian and former Haryana speaker Kuldeep Sharma joined the dinner meeting, besides MA Khan.

    The grouping had given an open invite to other Congressmen to join them at the dinner meeting.

    The sources said the meeting was convened to apprise all the G-23 members of the decisions taken at the crucial CWC meet.

    Two prominent G-23 members — Azad and Sharma — were to appraise the other members of the developments at the CWC meeting and what they said on strengthening the party in the wake of its drubbing in the Assembly polls, they said.

    The performance of the Congress in these states was poor as it failed to win any of the four BJP-ruled states — Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Uttarakhand and Manipur — while it lost Punjab to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

    The G-23 grouping has been critical of Congress’ leadership.

    It has been demanding an organisational overhaul after its members wrote a joint letter to Gandhi in 2020.

    The sources said invitations were also extended to the Congressmen who do not constitute the bloc but feel that changes are required, including at the leadership level, to revive the party’s electoral fortunes.

    The decision to convene a meeting of the G-23 came a day after Gandhi sought the resignation of the Congress presidents of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa.

    Sibal, in his latest salvo targeting the Congress leadership, had said the Gandhis should step aside and give some other leader a chance to helm the party, provoking a backlash from the Gandhi family loyalists, who accused him of speaking the language of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

    The G-23 has, however, got weakened over time with senior leader M Veerappa Moily distancing himself from the group, Jitin Prasada joining the BJP and Mukul Wasnik not attending its meetings in recent times.

    Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday engaged five senior leaders to assess the post-poll situation in five states and suggest organisational changes following its electoral debacle, a day after the state unit chiefs were asked to resign.

    Rajya Sabha MP Rajani Patil has been asked to assess the situation in Goa, Jairam Ramesh in Manipur and Ajay Maken in Punjab, where the Congress lost power to the Aam Aadmi Party.

    Congress leader Jitendra Singh will to asses the post-poll situation in Uttar Pradesh and suggest changes, while Avinash Pandey has been asked to do so in Uttarakhand.

    “Congress president has appointed leaders to assess the post-poll situation and suggest organisational changes in the states (with inputs) from MLA candidates and important leaders with immediate effect,” an official communication said.

    The Congress fared poorly in the just-concluded assembly elections by failing to win back any of the BJP-ruled states of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur and losing Punjab to the AAP.

    The Congress Working Committee had discussed the reasons for the poll debacle and authorised Sonia Gandhi to initiate necessary changes in these states after the drubbing.

    Gandhi Tuesday had asked the chiefs of its Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa and Manipur units to submit their resignations.

    (With PTI Inputs)

  • They are nowhere to be seen when kids are stuck in Ukraine: Tewari attacks Congress

    By PTI

    CHANDIGARH: Congress MP Manish Tewari on Wednesday took on his own party leaders in Punjab, claiming they were nowhere to be seen when thousands of Indian children were in jeopardy in war-ravaged Ukraine and his head “hangs in shame” at the callousness.

    Tewari asked if only the Punjab MPs were supposed to be doing all work and questioned where were Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, state Congress chief Navjot Sidhu, former state unit chief Sunil Jakhar and AICC incharge Punjab affairs Harish Chaudhary.

    His outburst came on a day when he, along with other Congress MPs Gurjeet Aujla, Amar Singh, Santokh Chaudhary, Jasbir Singh Gill and Ravneet Bittu, met Union Minister of State for External Affairs Meenakshi Lekhi, seeking increased efforts for evacuation of the students stuck in the eastern European country.

    In a series of tweets, Tewari, who is an MP from Anandpur Sahib, said, “I’m appalled great leaders of @INCPunjab Congress are nowhere to be seen/heard when thousands of our children our in jeopardy. Is it only Punjab MPs who have to do heavy lifting? Where is @CHARANJITCHANNI, @sherryontopp, @Suniljakhar, @Barmer_Harish. Is power be and end all?”

    “The reason to be in public life is public service. Elections are not the beginning and the end of politics. Can’t you see the videos, hear the cries of our children? Is this your Punjab model? I hang my head in shame at your sheer callousness. Wake up gentleman there is a life beyond elections,” he further tweeted.

    He also hit out at the AAP, the SAD and the BJP, telling them, “if you care for Punjab stand up and be counted”.

    “Where are the rest of the political parties who fought the Punjab elections so passionately? @AamAadmiParty, @Akali_Dal, @BJP4India. Why are you MIA? If you care for Punjab stand up and be counted when our children are in clear and present danger,” Tewari said in another tweet.

    On Punjab MPs meeting Lekhi, he said in another tweet, “MPs from Punjab called on @M_Lekhi Minister of State External Affairs requested her to sensitise GoI about the need to further augment and reinforce evacuation efforts of Indian nationals stuck in war zone in Ukraine especially our kids in Karkiv, far from the western borders of Ukraine.”

    Khadoor Sahib MP Jasbir Singh Gill said the delegation of MPs from Punjab met Lekhi to press upon the government to evacuate the Indians stranded in Ukraine and to stop the barbaric attacks on students by the Ukrainian police.

    He said Lekhi assured the delegation that every Indian will be brought back safely at the earliest safely.

    Amritsar MP Gurjeet Aujla said in a tweet that a list of people stuck in Ukraine was shared with the Union minister.

    “Joined by colleagues from Parliament met Minister of State for External Affairs @M_Lekhi ji regarding evacuation of Indians stranded at Ukraine’s inaccessible hotspots. Also handed over the list of the individuals with whom families lost all communication,” Aujla said.

  • Whenever India exercised restraint, Pakistan perceived it as sign of weakness: Tewari

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Whenever India exercised restraint, Pakistan perceived it as a sign of weakness, Congress leader Manish Tewari claimed on Thursday, days after his observations criticising the UPA government’s response to the 26/11 Mumbai attacks triggered a row.

    However, he sought to downplay his views on the UPA action mentioned in his new book, saying “This was about the perception that was in Pakistan and not about the UPA action to adopt restraint.”

    The Lok Sabha member said the surgical strikes by India did not bring a behavioural change in Pakistan as otherwise, the Pulwama attacks would not have happened.

    “Whenever India has exercised restraint, Pakistan does not perceive it as a sign of strength but considers it as a weakness,” he said.

    He also said that India was almost on a war-like situation at the time of the surgical strikes.

    Launching Tewari’s book “10 Flashpoints, 20 years” published by Rupa, former National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon said China is India’s foremost challenge today.

    “We have to accept the crisis in India-China relations with an entirely live LAC in this stage. China is our foremost security challenge. A peaceful periphery is essential if we have to transform India,” Menon said.

    He said though he agreed with the broad thrust of what Tewari has said, he disagrees with him on tactical issues like the action on 26/11 terror attacks.

    “But, his final conclusion is worrying. He concludes that the nation today is less safe that it was before. That is not a happy conclusion. I wish he would have said more on what is happening at the LAC, which is a live issue,” the former NSA said.

    Tewari accused the government of stopping the opposition from raising issues concerning China and a discussion in Parliament, asserting that it does not augur well for democracy.

    He said “there is no empirical evidence that there has been a substantive change in the behaviour of the deep state of Pakistan after the surgical strikes carried out by India.”

    He also wondered why China continues to have border disputes with India even when it has settled 17 territorial disputes with its land neighbours.

    “If India needs to surmount its internal developmental challenges, we require 30 years of peace. We need to find a modus vivandi with Pakistan and with China. Otherwise, we would not be able to do justice with our people,” he said.

    Tewari lamented that there is a blanket ban on raising of issues relating to China and LAC in Parliament and for almost 18 months, there has not been one substantive discussion on LAC situation.

    The former union minister said disengagement with China is a good solution and in his belief, this is in the interest of both India and China as a peaceful South Asia is both in the interest of India and China.

    He, however, skipped a question on politicisation of armed forces by saying, “I am not worried about Indian armed forces being politicised as I have tremendous faith in the Indian armed forces.”

    Tewari said India has two choices to either reduce the national security challenges that it has or expand its defence expenditure.

    Given the magnitude of our challenge, there is a clear mismatch and thus one of the choices have to be made by us, he noted.

    “Either we proactively try and clamp down on the situations we face and try and find a political resolution to the challenges we have or if we have to adopt a harder approach then we will have to substantially expand our defence expenditure. Our current level of defence expenditure just could not do,” he said.

    The Congress leader stressed that democracy functions on the basis of cheques and balances and a robust oversight is required and cited examples of various countries having a very robust Parliamentary oversight mechanism.

    He said there is not enough discussion with respect to national security in our legislatures, saying this is an important issue on which the government needs to level with the people.

    “The government cannot keep on saying that the border is not demarcated. The question is are those villages on this side or on the other side of LAC. The government needs to square up on what has been happening on the Line of Actual Control.”

    “Whenever we have tried to raise the issue of China. There is a definitely a problem as the government refuses to respond and that is not healthy for democracy. At some point of time, the government will have to face Parliament,” he noted.

  • UPA should have acted against Pakistan following 26/11: Manish Tewari sparks row

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Congress leader Manish Tewari has criticised the party-led UPA government for its response to the 26/11 Mumbai attack, suggesting India should have taken action against Pakistan since “restraint is not a sign of strength”, remarks that put the opposition party in an awkward situation for the second time this month after Salman Khurshid’s Hindutva criticism.

    As a row broke out on Tuesday over Tewari’s views in his new book that India should have actioned a “kinetic response” in the days after the November 2008 Mumbai attack, the BJP hit out at the Congress and alleged that the UPA-I government put national security at stake by not responding strongly.

    “There comes a time when actions must speak louder than words,” Tewari said.

    As many as 166 people were killed in the coordinated attacks carried out by 10 Pakistani terrorists at different places in the country’s commercial capital.

    Tewari, who was the national spokesperson at the time of the Mumbai attack, also faced criticism from within the Congress with party leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury saying the former union minister should have raised the matter when he was in the government.

    Tewari became a minister in the UPA-II government.

    UPA was in power for two consecutive five-year terms from 2004.

    In his book, Tewari also hit out at the Modi government, alleging that the scrapping of the China-specific Mountain Strike Corps in 2018 is the “greatest disservice” that the BJP government did to India’s national security.

    In his book “10 Flashpoints: 20 years” that is set to be released on December 2, Tewari looks back at the security situations that have impacted India in the last two decades.

    Tewari is a member of the ‘Group of 23′ leaders who had written to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi seeking organisational overhaul and elections for every post in the party.

    “Happy to announce that my Fourth Book will be in the market shortly – ’10 Flash Points; 20 Years – National Security Situations that Impacted India’. The book objectively delves into every salient National Security Challenge India has faced in the past two decades,” Tewari said in a tweet in the morning while announcing his book.

    He has in the book dissected the responses both in terms of success and failures and examined the tools and processes of Indian statecraft in terms of both diplomacy and intelligence.

    “For a state that has no compunctions in brutally slaughtering hundreds of innocent people, restraint is not a sign of strength; it is perceived as a symbol of weakness,” he said in his book.

    “There comes a time when actions must speak louder than words. 26/11 was one such time when it just should have been done. It, therefore, is my considered opinion that India should have actioned a kinetic response in the days following India’s 9/11,” he added.

    Sources close to Tewari said that what he meant by kinetic response was that India should have carried out targeted strikes against Pakistan and dismantled terror infrastructure after the Mumbai attack.

    The 13th anniversary of the 26/11 attack is to be observed on Friday.

    The Congress, however, did not respond officially to the remarks made in Tewari’s book.

    Party’s national spokesperson Pawan Khera said the book is not yet out and one cannot comment without reading it.

    Congress’ Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said it is strange that Tewari has woken up now on the 26/11 attack and that he should instead focus his criticism on China and what it was doing on Indian territory.

    “Sometimes, a book with controversies sells more. Today, when a controversy is raised, the book will be sold more and the BJP will become the salesman,” Chowdhury claimed.

    This is the second time this month that the Congress had to grapple with remarks made by its leaders in their latest books that have kicked up a row.

    A controversy had erupted after Khurshid drew a parallel of Hindutva with Islamist radical outfits like IS and Boko Haram, drawing criticism from within the Congress and the BJP.

    Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters here, BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said Tewari’s book confirms that the “Congress-led UPA government was insensitive, useless and was even not concerned about national security”.

    The UPA government had put the national security at stake, he alleged.

    “What Manish Tewariji said in his book, which we all have seen in the media, it would not be wrong to say that the facts that have come out. It would be appropriate to call it a confession of the failure of the Congress.” Bhatia said.

    Echoing similar sentiments, BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya said, after Salman Khurshid, another Congress leader “throws UPA under the bus to sell his book”.

    “Manish Tewari in his new book slams the UPA for weakness in the name of restraint post 26/11.

    Air Chief Marshal Fali Major is already on record saying IAF was ready to strike but UPA froze,” Malviya tweeted along with the book page critical of the UPA government.

    Hitting back at the BJP, Tewari said, “I am rather amused at BJP’s reaction to one excerpt from a 304 Page book that tries to dissect responses to National Security situations that impacted India.”

    “I wonder would they react similarly to some ‘hard analysis’ about their handling of the National Security remit also,” he asked.

    The former minister claimed that in July 2018, the defence and finance ministers of the subsequent Modi-led government shelved all the plans of raising the Mountain Strike Corps against China citing financial constraints.

  • UPA government should have actioned kinetic response following 26/11 Mumbai attack: Tewari

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Congress leader Manish Tewari has in his latest book criticised the UPA government for its response to the 26/11 Mumbai terror strikes, saying restraint is not a sign of strength and that India should have taken kinetic action following the attack.

    In the book “10 Flashpoints: 20 years” that is set to be released on December 2, the former union minister has looked back at the security situations that have impacted India in the last two decades.

    Tewari is a member of the ‘Group of 23′ leaders who had written to Sonia Gandhi seeking organisational overhaul and elections for every post in the Congress party.

    “Happy to announce that my Fourth Book will be in the market shortly – ’10 Flash Points; 20 Years – National Security Situations that Impacted India’.

    The book objectively delves into every salient National Security Challenge India has faced in the past two decades,” Tewari said in a tweet while announcing the launch of his book.

    He has dissected the responses both in terms of success and failures and examined the tools and processes of Indian statecraft in terms of both diplomacy and intelligence.

    “For a state that has no compunctions in brutally slaughtering hundreds of innocent people, restraint is not a sign of strength; it is perceived as a symbol of weakness,” he said in his book.

    “There comes a time when actions must speak louder than words. 26/11 was one such time when it just should have been done. It, therefore, is my considered opinion that India should have actioned a kinetic response in the days following India’s 9/11,” he said.

    The nation would observe the 13th anniversary of 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks this week.

    Citing excerpts of the book, the BJP on Tuesday alleged that the grand old party-led UPA government put the national security at stake by not responding strongly after the Mumbai terror attacks.

    Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters, BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said this confirms that the UPA government was “useless”.

    Tewari has also hit out at the Modi government, alleging that the scrapping of the Mountain Strike Corps is the “greatest disservice” that this government did to India’s national security.

    The former minister said in July 2018, the defence and finance ministers of the subsequent Modi-led government shelved all the plans of raising the Mountain Strike Corps against China citing financial constraints.

    Mounting pressure on the LAC leading to the Doklam crisis in 2017 could have been averted provided the mountain strike corps would have been raised, trained, resourced and efficaciously deployed, he said.

    “Scrapping the Mountain Strike Corps is perhaps the greatest disservice that this government did to India’s national security,” Tewari said.

    He also said while the triumphant Taliban claim that just as the fighting and fiercely independent people of Afghanistan had vanquished the Soviet Union, a superpower in the penultimate decade of the 20th century, it had similarly defeated the only remaining hyper-power, the US, in the second decade of the 21st century through guile, cunning and military tactics.

    It would have profound consequences on Pax Americana and the US’s reliability qua its allies around the world, he noted.

    The Congress leader said the implication of such an assertion and the unfolding situation in Afghanistan is that it would give a huge fillip to all kinds of militant and terrorist organisations in West and South Asia from the lslamic State-Daesh and al-Qaeda to the LeT and JeM respectively.

    “Both radicalism and extremism would be exacerbated.

    This will have implications on the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir and the other north-western border states also,” he noted.

  • For India, Imran is ‘cat’s paw’ of Pakistan deep state: Manish Tewari dig at Sidhu’s ‘bada bhai’ remark

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Taking a swipe at Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sindhu for purportedly calling Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan “bada bhai”, party leader Manish Tewari Saturday said Khan may be anybody’s elder brother but for India he is that “cat’s paw” of the Pakistan deep state that drones arms and narcotics into Punjab and sends terrorists on a daily basis to Jammu and Kashmir.

    A video of Sidhu, during a trip to Kartarpur Sahib on Saturday, being welcomed by a Pakistani official on behalf of Khan has gone viral in which the Congress leader is purportedly heard saying Khan was like a “bada bhai” to him and that he loved him a lot.

    Taking to Twitter, Tewari tweeted, “@ImranKhanPTI may be anybody’s elder brother but for India he is that cat’s paw of Pak Deep State ISI-Military combine that drones arms & narcotics into Punjab & sends terrorists on a daily basis across LOC in J&K.”

    “Have we forgotten martyrdom of our soldiers in Poonch so soon,” the MP from Anandpur Sahib said.

    India had recently opened the Kartarpur Sahib corridor, and a number of pilgrims from Punjab, including politicians, have visited the place on the occasion of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak’s birth anniversary.

  • Hindutva-Hinduism debate splits Congress leadership

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: As the Hindutva vs Hinduism debate rages in Congress following former party chief Rahul Gandhi’s recent comments, there is a split in the leadership. Some are worried that the party should avoid getting into this debate ahead of Assembly elections while others feel the party needs to talk about it to remain electorally relevant in its fight against BJP.

    Rahul’s comments that killing innocent people is not Hinduism but Hindutva invited wrath from various fronts. But crucially, his own party now appears divided over the matter. Senior leader and MP Manish Tewari said that Congress might have started a slide down on a slippery slope by deviating from the Nehruvian ideal of secularism and that he was confused about the Hinduism vs Hindutva debate.

    1/2 Ideal that Religion is a private space activity. Everyone has the right to practice,profess & propagate their religion in their private lives. In Public domain there should be a strict separation of the Church & State.I am a Hindu,I worship my God but that is not my politics
    — Manish Tewari (@ManishTewari) November 17, 2021
    “In the Hinduism Versus Hindutva debate, some people in Congress miss a fundamental point. If I were to believe that my religious identity should be the basis of my politics, then I should be in A Majoritarian or Minoritarian Political Party. I am in the Congress because I believe in the Nehruvian ideal that religion is a private space activity,” Tewari said on Twitter.     

    Many in the grand old party feel that getting into this debate ahead of upcoming Assembly elections could be suicidal and that party leaders should avoid getting into this debate. The party is already battling references made by another senior party leader Salman Khurshid equating Hindutva with ISIS and Boko Haram.  

    However, some others in the party are for ‘soft Hindutva’ to reach out to people. They say  the party cannot woo people if it is seen as only for the minority sections. “The party cannot ignore the majority (Hindus) and have to reach out to them to win elections. It does not mean following the BJP style of spreading hate and anger in the name of religion. But making such (like Khurshid) statements will dent our chances and we will be projected as against the majority,” said a leader from Uttar Pradesh.

    Plagued with infighting in a few states, this internal debate is something Congress could have done without.

  • ‘Previous two AGs became punching bags in proxy political wars’: Manish Tewari hits out at Punjab Congress

    By ANI

    NEW DELHI: Indicating that situation is not normal in Punjab Congress, Congress leader and Anandpur Sahib MP Manish Tewari said two previous Advocate Generals of Punjab became punching bags in “proxy political wars”, indicating that infighting within party continues despite leadership changes in the government.

    The comment of Anandpur Sahib MP’s came a day after Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi accepted the resignation of Advocate General APS Deol, who had resigned amid repeated accusations against him regarding interfering with the work of the Punjab Government and spreading misinformation by Punjab Congress Chief Navjot Singh Sidhu.

    Taking to Twitter, the Congress leader said that politicising the Advocate General’s office undermines the integrity of Constitutional functionaries.

    “Since Punjab government is going to appoint New Advocate General they would be well advised to peruse Rules of Professional Standards prescribed by Bar Council of India,” he said.

    “An advocate is bound to accept any brief in the courts or tribunals or before any other authority in or before which he proposes to practise He should levy fees which is at par with the fees collected by fellow advocates of his standing at the Bar and the nature of the case. Special circumstances may justify his refusal to accept a particular brief’ Politicising AG’s office undermines the integrity of Constitutional functionaries,” Tiwari said quoting the rule of Bar Council of India.

    “Both previous General’s Advocate of Punjab became punching bags in proxy political wars. Those who subvert the institution of AG’s office need to remember a lawyer is neither wedded to a client or a brief,” the Congress leader added.

    Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Tuesday accepted the resignation of Advocate General APS Deol.

    Sidhu has opposed Deol’s appointment because earlier he had represented Sumedh Singh Saini, who was the state’s director general of police (DGP) at the time of the sacrilege incidents in 2015. Sidhu had alleged that Deol prayed for transferring the investigation to CBI as he was afraid of their false implication in sacrilege cases on accounts of “malafide, malice and ulterior motives” on the part of the political party in power in the state of Punjab.

    Along with Punjab AG, the state’s Director General of Police (DGP) would also be changed and will be sent to the Governor. Currently, IPS Iqbal Preet Singh Sahota is heading as the state’s DGP.