The speculation over the attendance of Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge at the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi ended hours before the event was scheduled in the national capital on Sunday. According to the sources of India TV, Kharge will attend the grand event as the leader of opposition. According to news agency ANI, the senior Congress leader received the invitation on Saturday late at night.
The souces claimed BJP Leader Prahlad Joshi called the stalwart Opposition leader after the grand old party criticised the saffron party for not sending invitiations to their leaders.
The grand event is scheduled for Sunday (June 9), where Modi along with top ministers will take oath as the leaders of the newly formed government.
Earlier on June 8, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh claimed that party leaders had not received any invitation for PM Modi's swearing-in ceremony. Taking a dig at the Modi 3.0 government, Ramesh stressed international leaders were being invited to the grand event but the Indian leaders weren't. Ramesh had said in a press conference that only international leaders have been invited for the swearing-in ceremony.
The same was echoed by Cngress MP Shashi Tharoor. "I have not been invited to the swearing-in, so I'll be watching the (India vs Pakistan) match." "I think that’s a good tradition of inviting the neighbouring countries. But this time there’s one less. He has not invited Pakistan. So again, that also sends a signal…," he added.
'Narendra Destructive Alliance'
Taking a swipe Modi, the the Congress on Sunday said he will get himself sworn-in this evening as "the leader of the Narendra Destructive Alliance (NDA)" even though he lacks all legitimacy.
Ramesh said, "Remember May 28th, 2023? It was the day that Narendra Modi walked into the new Parliament building with the Sengol for which a August 15th 1947 history was fabricated 'to not only justify Modi's pretensions of being Samrat but also to appeal to the Tamil electorate."
"That day itself, I had exposed Modi's fakery using archival material," he said. "We now know the outcome of that drama. The Sengol remains a respected symbol of Tamil history but the Tamil electorate and indeed India's electorate has rejected Mr. Modi's pretensions," Ramesh said.
The Congress leader claimed that Modi has suffered a huge personal, political, and moral defeat. Modi has been forced to bow to the Constitution that he has subverted in the last decade, Ramesh said.
"A vastly diminished 'one-third' Pradhan Mantri, now lacking all legitimacy, has managed to get himself sworn this evening, as the leader of the Narendra Destructive Alliance (NDA)," he said.
Modi is set to be sworn-in this evening. The dignitaries and special invitees attending the ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Sunday evening include leaders from India's neighbourhood and the Indian Ocean Region.
(With inputs from agency)
