Ministers, presiding officers give Central Hall function on Jawaharlal Nehru's birth anniversary a miss

The customary function in the Central Hall of Parliament to pay floral tributes to India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru on his birth anniversary witnessed a rare sight of central ministers as well as the presiding officers of both the Houses failing to turn up, prompting criticism from the opposition parties.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi and many senior Congress MPs, including leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and deputy leader Anand Sharma, paid floral tributes to the stalwart of the freedom movement in the Central Hall of Parliament on Sunday.

Congress chief whip in Rajya Sabha Jairam Ramesh said: "Extraordinary scene today (Sunday) in Parliament at the traditional function to mark the birth anniversary of those whose portraits adorn the Central Hall. Speaker Lok Sabha absent. Chairman Rajya Sabha absent. Not a single minister present. Can it get more atrocious than this?"


Trinamool MP Derek O'Brien said: "Nothing surprises me anymore. This dispensation is destroying India's great institutions, including #Parliament one day at a time."

Sharma tweeted: "A grateful nation will remember Pt Jawaharlal Nehru for his unforgettable contribution in building institutions that shaped a modern nation and establishing an inclusive constitutional democracy that guarantees fundamental rights for all Indians."

Meanwhile, an official statement said PM Modi and LS Speaker Om Birla will pay floral tributes to Bhagwan Birsa Munda statue in Parliament House on Monday on the iconic tribal leader's birth anniversary. Birla on Sunday attended the 'bal Session' organised in Rajasthan Legislative Assembly.