Congress’ ‘one-third’ jibe at PM Modi; poses four questions before his oath-taking ceremony

NEW DELHI: After the Lok Sabha poll outcome, the Congress questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi whether he would fulfil his promise of giving special category status to the states of Andhra Pradesh and Bihar. In the same breath, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Modi 3.0 government, saying it is “Modi 1/3 government”.

In a video shared on X, Congress’ general secretary posed four questions to the Prime Minister, saying he has four questions for the prime minister — two for Andhra Pradesh and two for Bihar.

“Our four questions to the one-third Prime Minister who is going to be elected. 1. On 30 April 2014, in the holy city of Tirupati, you promised to give special status to Andhra Pradesh. Will that promise be fulfilled now? 2. Will you stop the privatization of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant now? 3. Will you fulfil your 2014 election promise and the ten-year-old demand of your ally Nitish Kumar by giving special state status to Bihar? 4. Do you promise to conduct a caste census in the entire country like Bihar?” senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh posted on ‘X’.

बनने जा रहे एक तिहाई प्रधानमंत्री से हमारे 4 सवाल –

1. 30 अप्रैल 2014 को पवित्र नगरी तिरुपति में आपने आंध्र प्रदेश को विशेष दर्जा देने का वादा किया था। क्या वह वादा अब पूरा होगा?

2. क्या आप विशाखापट्टनम स्टील प्लांट के निजीकरण को अब रोकेंगे?

3. क्या आप बिहार को विशेष राज्य का… pic.twitter.com/CjMpbD708v

— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) June 6, 2024

His comment follows the recent developments where the BJP fell short of the 272-seat majority mark in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and with support from Naidu’s TDP and Nitish Kumar’s JD(U), which won 16 and 12 seats in Andhra Pradesh and Bihar, respectively, and other alliance partners, the NDA has crossed the halfway mark.

The Congress has bagged 99 seats in the Lok Sabha polls, indicating a massive improvement from its 2019 tally when it secured merely 52 seats. The total tally of the INDIA bloc stands at 234.

Meanwhile, Narendra Modi is likely to take oath as Prime Minister for the third consecutive term on June 9, sources said. Earlier there was speculation that the swearing-in ceremony of the new NDA government led by PM Modi would take place on Saturday.

On Wednesday the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) unanimously passed a resolution to elect Narendra Modi as their leader for the third time. This decision was taken during a crucial meeting held at the Prime Minister’s official residence in Delhi on Wednesday. The NDA leaders expressed their admiration for Prime Minister Modi’s leadership and the progress made by the nation under his guidance over the past decade.

In the meantime, President Droupadi Murmu dissolved the 17th Lok Sabha on Wednesday, following the recommendation of the Union Cabinet.

As per the results announced by the Election Commission of India on Tuesday, the BJP won 240 seats and along with its allies, it stands at 293 seats. Chandrababu Naidu’s TDP and Nitish Kumar’s JDU, having won 16 and 12 seats respectively in their respective states, have extended support to the NDA. (ANI)