BJP dubs opposition walk-out during black money debate as 'politics'

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday dubbed the walk-out staged by the Congress and other opposition parties from the Rajya Sabha during Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's reply on the black money issue as 'politics'.

"Today it was indeed amazing to notice that the Congress and other opposition parties, who were almost trying to derail the House for two days on the issue of black money, did not have the patience or even the courage to listen to the very categorical and clear articulation of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in terms of what the new government has done regarding the issue," Union Minister for Communications and Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad told the media.

"Despite many overtures by the Indian Government on the world stage, including making it an issue at the G-20 Summit, the opposition was not willing to listen to the truth. They are only indulging in politics," he added.

Responding to the debate on black money issue in the Rajya Sabha earlier in the day, Jaitley asserted that the Centre is committed to identify every black money account holder and said that the government has identified holders of 427 accounts abroad and notices have been sent to them.

Jaitley's statement caused uproar following which members of the Congress, Trinamool Congress (TMC), Communist Party of India (CPI) and the Samajwadi Party staged a walk-out from the Rajya Sabha.