A combative Sonia Gandhi on Monday rejected government's offer of Prime Minister's intervention on Lalitgate and Vyapam issues in Parliament to break the impasse, insisting that those responsible for "gross wrong-doings" should first resign.
Attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Congress President said he is conspicuous by his "deafening silence on the blatant transgressions" by his external affairs minister and two chief ministers.
"The champion of 'mann ki baat' appears to have retreated into a "maun vrat", she said while lashing out at the Prime Minister and the BJP at the Congress Parliamentary Party meeting in New Delhi.
The Congress chief said that the party is very clear that there can be "no productive discussion and no meaningful proceedings as long as those responsible for gross wrong-doings remain in office".
"Our stand is straightforward and clear from day one. There is a mountain of incontrovertible evidence in public domain for the prime minister to require the resignations of the external affairs minister and the two chief ministers," she said.
Making a strong pitch for "resign first, debate later" line, she wondered whether the BJP has forgotten that it is the "author of the principle which it has used on at least
five different occasions since 1993".
She preceded the remark by saying that since memories were short, the party needed to remind its political adversaries who "conveniently are suffering from selective amnesia".
"Today, we have to listen to sermons on parliamentary behaviour from those who not only defended but also advocated disruption as a legitimate tactic when they were in the opposition.
"Yesterday's agitators in both the Houses have suddenly become today's champions of debate and discussion," she said
Sonia, who is also Chairperson of the CPP, declared that the Congress will "persist" making its points "forcefully and emphatically" both in Parliament and outside.
Just two more weeks are left for the monsoon session to conclude. Seeking to end the impasse, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venlaiah Naidu had said the Prime Minister will be prepared to make an intervention during a debate on the Lalit Modi and Vyapam issues.
Sonia alleged that the impasse was due to the "gross insensitivity of the Modi government to public opinion, for its absolute silence on acts of monumental corruption, its wilful violations of the law and gross misdemeanours on the part of its leading lights".
The Congress president further tagged the Prime Minister as a 'master re-packager'.
"Since we met last, the Modi government has completed its first year in office and already it stands completely exposed. Of course, the Prime Minister has turned out to be a master re-packager, a skilful salesman, a sharp headline grabber and a clever news manager. Not a day passes without some UPA programme being given a new name or a new spin," said Sonia.
"We cannot deny the prime minister this prerogative. But what is positively deplorable is the shocking cuts in the budgetary allocations for these social sector schemes. That, and not the hijacking of our yojanas and initiatives, is what is most destructive," she said.
