OPPOSITION CALLS CENTRE ‘ARROGANT’, SEEKS DISCUSSION ON PEGASUS, NEW FARM LAWS

Opposition parties on Wednesday said they were “firm and united” on their demand for a discussion on the Pegasus issue and noted that the responsibility for the deadlock in parliament “lies squarely” with the government, which remains “arrogant and obdurate”.

In a joint statement by leaders of Congress and 13 other parties, they said that the Opposition has also unequivocally conveyed that the discussion on the farmers’ issues and “agitations arising from the three anti-farmers and black agri-laws” should follow the discussion on Pegasus. The statement said it is unfortunate that the government has unleashed misleading campaign to malign the combined opposition and was blaming it for the continued disruption in the Parliament.

“The opposition parties stand firm and united on their demand for a discussion on Pegasus issue in both the Houses, replied to by the Home Minister, as this has national security dimensions,” the statement said. “The responsibility for the deadlock lies squarely at the doorsteps of the government, which remains arrogant and obdurate and refuses to accept the opposition’s demand for an informed debate in both the houses,” it added.

On Tuesday, senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi led a meeting of Opposition leaders as he called all parties to unite against the Modi government over a range of issues, including the Pegasus snooping row, the handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, and farmers’ agitation.

After the meeting, several Opposition MPs led by Gandhi cycled to Parliament to highlight the issue of rising fuel prices. This came barely a week after his surprise tractor ride to Parliament in protest against the same issue.

“The single motive to invite you is that we should unite. The more this voice unites, the more powerful it will become, the more difficult it will become for the BJP and RSS to suppress this voice. We should remember the foundation of unity and it is important that now we start to come up with the principles of this foundation,” Gandhi had said at the meeting.

While the Opposition has been insisting on a full-fledged debate on the Pegasus spyware issue, the government’s stand has been that it is ready to discuss anything but that.