The Presidential candidate of the combined Opposition parties and senior leader Yashwant Sinha on Sunday said that the president should be an impartial custodian of the constitution and not a silent rubber stamp, and pledged to be answerable to the constitution even as he challenged the ruling party candidate Droupadi Murmu to also take a similar pledge.
Speaking in Bengaluru after meeting the Congress leaders and legislators on Sunday, Mr. Sinha pledged to be answerable to the constitution and restrain the central government of if it aids and abets outrageously undemocratic practises such as Operation Kamala that has been used to destabilise opposition governments in Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Goa and Maharashtra. He also pledged to speak out against any attempts aimed at communal polarisation and defend freedom of press, speech and other rights besides working for the repeal of the sedition law. “I have great personal regard for the candidate of the ruling party. However, in the prevailing grim circumstances in the country, I urge her to assure the people of India on the above concern and make similar pledge,” Mr. Sinha challenged Ms. Murmu.
Quoting the recent statement of Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana that “judiciary is answerable to the constitution and constitution alone,” the former Union Minister said: “I fully endorse this view and congratulate CJI Ramana for this forthright affirmation. I have been saying since I filed my nomination papers on June 27 that the sole purpose behind my acceptance of the combined Opposition’s offer to be their candidate is to safeguard the constitution and its lofty values, which are today under unprecedented threat.”
In the past eight years, Mr. Sinha pointed out; “The ruling dispensation has launched repeated assaults on democracy and secularism, which form the founding principles of our Republic. It has unleashed a poisonous communal propaganda to divide India’s multi religious society.”
Referring to Supreme Court’s stringent indictment of Nupur Sharma’s remarks on Prophet Mohammed, he said: “Regrettably, BJP supporters are trolling the Supreme Court for condemning her remarks.” He also lamented that the central government has weaponised ED, CBI, Election Commission and even the Governor’s office against Opposition parties, their leaders and governments, and insulting them.
He also accused the ruling BJP in Karnataka of attempting to communalise the minds of the young generation through introduction of coloured curriculum.
“In Karnataka, the Government has been attempting to communalise the minds of the young generation by introducing a new school curriculum coloured by the ruling party’s ideological agenda. I condemn this,” he told presspersons after meeting senior Congress leaders and addressing the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) as part of support building exercise for his candidature. He said: “I have great admiration for Karnataka because of its rich spiritual heritage and its contribution to India’s freedom struggle.” He also recalled the contribition of Basavanna, Kanakadasa, Kuvempu and Dr. Rajkumar.
