New Delhi [India], October 26 (ANI): Lok Sabha Member of Parliament (MP) and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Jagdambika Pal alleged on Monday that Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi was ‘driven by a certain prejudice’ to not attend the BRICS Parliamentary forum, which was attended by multiple MPs today.
“This is not the first time this has happened; he has been absent from such conferences in the past as well. After all, the public elected him as an MP and a LoP—he ought to be present. Yet, driven by a certain prejudice, he chooses not to attend—he doesn't even show up for parliamentary sessions; the last session was a complete washout,” Pal told ANI.
Calling his absence ‘notable’, Pal said that this BRICS forum was not a partisan affair, but the LoP in Lok Sabha “chose” to go to Uttar Pradesh instead.
“In this instance, however—an international conference involving 11 BRICS nations and 10 partner countries, with speakers and delegations arriving from all of them—his absence is notable. We are all here to participate in these deliberations. This is a significant global conclave, focused on debates and discussions centred on the development of people worldwide—it is not a partisan parliamentary affair. I wonder why he chose to go to Lucknow today, especially given his history of skipping such international conferences," he said.
“If you look at the current global situation—whether in France, Albania, Italy, or Iran—India is taking a significant step by hosting the 12th BRICS Parliamentary Forum. The theme of this forum is Fostering Parliamentary Cooperation for People-Centric Development. It focuses on how the parliamentary system can drive development that centres on the people,” the MP said.
The session will explore how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be leveraged for the benefit of humanity, along with promoting global cooperation among various nations.
“The agenda is divided into four key areas, one of the most important being the promotion of global cooperation among nations, as well as exploring how AI can be leveraged for the benefit of humanity. Given the current global landscape, India’s hosting of this 12th BRICS Parliamentary Forum is highly significant. It builds upon the previous BRICS Delhi Declaration, taking the agenda a step further," Pal said.
Earlier today, Rahul Gandhi travelled to Lucknow from Delhi, where he then travelled by road to Sultanpur to attend the court proceedings against him regarding a 2018 defamation case involving Amit Shah.
The Special MP/MLA court in Sultanpur, Uttar Pradesh, had dismissed the case against the Lok Sabha LoP.
The case stemmed from remarks made by Rahul Gandhi in 2018 in Bengaluru, Karnataka, in which it was alleged that the LoP had made “objectionable remarks” against Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Meanwhile, in the BRICS parliamentary forum, Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the 12th BRICS Parliamentary Forum inauguration, welcoming foreign delegations from the BRICS forum partner countries.
Among the arriving foreign delegations, PM Modi also welcomed the Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, Vyacheslav Volodin, on the sidelines.
Earlier, foreign delegations from the BRICS forum partner countries arrived at the Parliament complex in the national capital. The foreign dignitaries were given a warm welcome by officials and MPs. (ANI)
Rahul Gandhi ‘driven by certain prejudice’ to not attend BRICS Parliamentary Forum: Jagdambika Pal
