PM entitled to his comments abroad: Jaitley to Opposition

Modi made a remark saying that he wanted to clean the dirt of 60 years forcing three adjournments in the pre-lunch session

Members from Opposition and treasury benches had a heated exchange of words in Rajya Sabha today over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's remarks on foreign soil that he wanted to clean the dirt of 60 years forcing three adjournments in the pre-lunch session.

Rejecting the Opposition charge that Modi was lowering the dignity" of the country by making such remarks abroad, Leader of the House and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the Prime Minister was "perfectly entitled" to say that his government will break away from what happened in last 60 years and give a clean government.

He also took potshots at both Janata Dal (United) and CPI(M) wondering whether they thought that India is not defamed by "acts of corruption" but by referring to those acts.

Congress Deputy Leader Anand Sharma raised the issue through a notice for suspension of business under rule 267 to discuss Modi's remarks in Germany and Canada alleging that the Prime Minister lowered the prestige and dignity of the country, a contention which was supported by members from other Opposition parties including Sharad Yadav of JD-U.

Vehemently countering the charge, Jaitley while he can understand the Congress benches getting upset with the talk of cleaning up corruption, he was suprised at the remarks of JD(U) chief Sharad Yadav and those of the CPI-M leaders.

"I am surprised with this new-found dialectics of the morals of the CPI-M. According to this new ideology ...India is not defamed by acts of corruption. India is defamed only when you refer to the acts of corruption," he said.