New Delhi: Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Friday hit back at Union minister Kiren Rijiju after he shared the senior advocate’s remarks from 2011 on the right to protest to attack the Congress, saying the Congress-led UPA …

New Delhi: Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Friday hit back at Union minister Kiren Rijiju after he shared the senior advocate’s remarks from 2011 on the right to protest to attack the Congress, saying the Congress-led UPA government had never prevented people from protesting or used pellet guns and lathi-charge against demonstrators.Sibal’s response came a day after Rijiju shared a video of the senior advocate speaking at a press conference in 2011 about the India Against Corruption movement against the then UPA regime.“Right to protest is not the right to protest at the place of your choice,” Sibal had said in the video.Sharing the clip, Rijiju described Sibal as a “Dimagi Naxal” and alleged that he had exposed the Congress’s “secrets” and criticised Rahul Gandhi.’India wants change of govt via democratic means’: Kapil Sibal slams Mohan Bhagwat’s regime change remarks”Kapil Sibal is a ‘Dimagi Naxal’, but he’s very skilled at exposing the Congress Party’s secrets! He’s thoroughly torn Rahul Gandhi to shreds. Now, Congress Party & Cockroaches will listen to the advice of their Legal Guru,” he said.In another post on Friday, Rijiju asked journalists to question Sibal on whether there were new laws governing protests after 2014 or whether he had created a separate Constitution for himself and the Congress.Hitting back at Rijiju at a press conference here, Sibal took a swipe at the Union minister, who had earlier held the law portfolio, questioning his legal experience.“I wish I could have seen him somewhere in court — in my 50-odd years at the courts, at least I have not seen him in the corridors of the court,” Sibal said, adding that Rijiju criticised others without understanding the facts.Sibal rejected Rijiju’s claim that the UPA government had opposed protests, asking whether his government had resorted to lathi-charge or used pellet guns to injure demonstrators.“We never ensured that people don’t protest. In fact, on one occasion… in a Cabinet meeting this issue was discussed, and my colleagues said, ‘Look, this is a right under the Constitution, you cannot interfere with this right, this is a constitutional right,’” Sibal said.He added that protests had played a role in India’s Independence movement and could lead to another form of independence.PM Modi, Amit Shah orchestrating Census 2027 in a way to determine citizenship: CongressCriticising the functioning of Parliament under the current government, Sibal said, “As far as Parliamentary Affairs is concerned, we know how he (Rijiju) runs Parliament. That is his expertise: to ensure that the voice of the Opposition is not heard for which he should get a medal of some kind.””They don’t allow us to raise the issues we want to raise. They don’t allow us to protest. They pass bills without a discussion. They are unconcerned with parliamentary procedures. The manner in which Parliament was functioning was unprecedented in India’s history,” he added.Taking a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks about 2014 marking a new era, Sibal said the government appeared to treat India’s history before that year as anti-national.“Modi ji said that real independence happened in 2014. That’s what they say: ‘Real independence of India happened in 2014. The history of India is written only after 2014; the rest of history is all anti-national, no?’” he said.’Dangerous Urban Dimagi Naxal’: Kiren Rijiju hits back at Naseeruddin Shah over ‘proud dimagi naxal’ videoSibal said that chapter of history would be effaced by 2029 and Parliament would be restored to its dignity in the years to come.He also said that if Rijiju found himself in the Opposition in the future, the Congress would allow him to speak, adding, “Rijiju ji, please remember: history repeats itself.”

Source: Deccan Herald