‘Blatant abuse of power’: Congress moves privilege notice against PM Modi over address to nation on women quota | India News
New Delhi: Congress MP KC Venugopal on Tuesday filed a breach of privilege notice in Parliament for his address to the nation against Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the Lok Sabha failed to pass his 131st Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2026.Calling it a “brazen abuse of power”, the Alappuzha MP said the speech in which the Prime Minister criticized the opposition constituted “gross violation of rights and contempt of the House”. “In a 29-minute address, dubbed ‘Address’ to the Nation, the Prime Minister criticized the opposition parties for blocking the bill and directly reflected on the way members of the opposition party voted and attributed their motives… It is unprecedented for the Prime Minister to address the nation for criticizing opposition parties for failing to secure the required majority in Parliament, which is immoral and a blatant abuse of power. Such a statement by the country’s highest executive officer is a serious breach of privilege and contempt of the House,” Venugopal’s release said.Sharing the notice on X, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, “A sitting prime minister’s address to the nation is always reserved for national unity and confidence-building. The prime minister’s blatant partisanship in this address – including 59 different attacks on the Congress party – will stain his record as another permanent prime minister.”This follows the comments of Prime Minister Modi, who said that the rejection of the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill is a direct blow to the dignity of women, something he believes women voters will not forget. “Women can forget many things, but not insults to their pride,” she said. He added that what he called the opposition’s “misdeeds” would ultimately be punished by the people.
