Sonia Gandhi's jibe at Modi's swearing-in ceremony: 'far from taking responsibility for failure

Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi took a dig at Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi on the eve of his third swearing-in ceremony. Addressing the extended Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting on Saturday, Gandhi accused Modi of losing the mandate he sought and failing to take responsibility for what she termed as his "failure."

"The Prime Minister who sought the mandate solely in his name to the exclusion of both his party and its allies has suffered a political and worse, a moral defeat. In reality, he has lost the mandate he sought and thereby lost the right to leadership as well," Sonia Gandhi stated.

Gandhi's comments come as Modi prepares to be sworn in for an unprecedented third consecutive term. She highlighted her skepticism about any change in Modi's governance style, suggesting he would not acknowledge the will of the people. "Yet, far from taking responsibility for failure, he intends to get himself sworn in again. We do not expect him to change the substance and style of his governance, nor take cognizance of the will of the people," she added.

Emphasizing the role of the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) in holding the government accountable, Gandhi called on members to be vigilant and proactive. "That is why, as members of the CPP, we have a special obligation to be watchful, vigilant and proactive in holding him and his new NDA government accountable," she said.

Gandhi further condemned the parliamentary practices over the past decade under Modi's leadership, stressing the need for proper legislative procedures. "No longer can and should Parliament be bulldozed like it has been for a decade now. No longer will the writ of the ruling establishment be permitted to disrupt Parliament, whimsically mistreat members or push through legislation without due and proper consideration and debate. No longer can and should Parliamentary Committees be ignored or bypassed like they have been since 2014," she asserted. "No longer will Parliament be muzzled and stifled as it has been over the past ten years," she added.

Narendra Modi is scheduled to take the oath of office at 7:15 PM today at Rashtrapati Bhavan, alongside his council of ministers. This ceremony follows the unanimous resolution passed by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on June 5, electing Modi as their leader. With this swearing-in, Modi will join former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru as the only leader elected for a third consecutive term after completing the full tenure of each previous term.

In the recent elections, the BJP secured 240 seats, while the NDA as a whole garnered 292 out of the 543 Lok Sabha seats. Congress, part of the INDIA bloc, managed to prevent the BJP from achieving a majority on its own in the Lok Sabha.

As Modi prepares for his third term, the opposition, led by Sonia Gandhi, promises heightened vigilance and accountability in the coming years.